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FEDERAL EDITION 
Limited to 1000 signed and numbered sets. 



The Collector's Edition of the Writings of Henry 
Clay is limited to six hundred signed and numbered 
sets, of which this is 

Number-J^L-J- 

We guarantee that no limited, numbered edition, 
other than the Federal, shall be printed from these 
plates. 

The written number must correspond with the 
perforated number at the top of this page. 



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Henry Clay. 

From an old lithograph 



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The Works of 



Henry Clay 

Comprising His Life, Correspondence 
and Speeches 



Edited by 
Calvin Colton, LL.D. 

With an Introduction by 
Thomas B. Reed 

And a History of Tariff Legislation, 1 8 1 2-1 896 

by 

William McKinley 



Ten Volumes 



G. P. Putnam's Sons 
New York and London 
TLbc Iknlcherbocftec press 

1904 



e:337 






i 



The Works of Henry Clay 
Volume One 



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TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, 

TO WHOSE SERVICE, WELFARE, AND HAPPINESS, THE SUBJECT OF THIS WORK, 

HENRY CLAY, 

HAS CONSECRATED A LONG LIFE OF TOIL AND SELF-SACRIFICE, OF WHICH 
THEY ARE COMPETENT WITNESSES, AND WILL BE HONEST JUDGES, 
THIS PRODUCTION, CONSCIENTIOUSLY COMPOSED, THOUGH NOT 
CLAIMING TO BE FREE FROM THE IMPERFECTIONS WHICH 
CHARACTERIZE ALL HUMAN EFFORTS, IS MOST RE- 
SPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR, 

C. COLTON. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I 

FAOB 

Mr. Clay's Early History. — His Birth, Parentage, and Family 
History.— Death of his Father.— The Widow's Cares.— School- 
master and Schoolhouse of the Slashes.— The Mill-Boy of the 
Slashes. — Second Marriage of Henry Clay's Mother. — Kindness of 
his Father-in-Law. — His Entrance on a Commercial Apprentice- 
ship at Richmond. — Removal to a Clerkship in a Public OfRce. — 
First Impressions of Fellow-Clerks. — Change of their Opinion. — 
Henry attracts the Attention of Chancellor Wythe. — Becomes his 
Amanuensis. — Advantages of this Position. — His Tastes and Intel- 
lectual Improvement. — His Fame in the Rhetorical Society. — 
Purity of his Character. — His popularity. — Removal of his Mother 
and Family to Kentucky. — Letter from his Mother. — Basis of his 
Character. — His Study of the Law. — Admission to Practice. — Re- 
moval to Kentucky 39 



CHAPTER n 

Mr. Clay's Domestic History.— His Marriage.— His Children.— His 
Domestic Afflictions. — His Domestic Character. — His Character as 
a Master, Neighbor, Citizen, and Man of Feeling. — Ashland and 
its Hospitalities. — Mr. Clay's Estate and Pecuniary Condition. . 53 



CHAPTER III 

Mr. Clay's Moral Character and Religious Sentiments. — His 
Moral Character Formed Independent of Common Rules. — High 
Tone of his Moral Principles. — A Leader, not a Follower.— An 
Example, not a Copjnst. — His Pecuniary Morals.— Morals of his 
Domestic Relations. — Of his Social Relations. — Of his Politics. — 
Wherein his Morals are above the Common Level. — His Religious 
Sentiments.— His Character admired by the Young. . . .67 



CONTENTS OF VOLUME 1. 
CHAPTER IV 



PASS 



82 



Mr. Clay's Personal Qualities and Eloquence.— His Person.— 
His Temperament.— His Manners.— His Voice.— Attributes of his 
Eloquence.— Specimen* of his Eloquence.— Recollections of his 
Unpublished Speeches 

CHAPTER V 

Mr. Clay's Professional Career.- His School of Preparation.— 
Examples of his Success in Civil and Criminal Causes.— Colonel 
Burr's Application to him.— His Defence of Charles Wicklifle. . 99 

CHAPTER VI 

Mr. Clay's Wit and Other Brilliant Qualities.— Specimens as 
Exemphfied in his Private and Public Life.— In his Conversation 
and in his Speeches. — In a Variety of Conditions and Relations. . 117 

CHAPTER VII 

Mr. Clay as a Public Man.— AsaPolitican. — As a Statesman. — As 
a Diplomatist. — His Congressional Career 147 

CHAPTER VIII 

Mr. Clay as an American Patriot.— His own Definition of Patri- 
otism. — Exemplifications of this Character in Himself. — Washing- 
ton and Clay.— How they differ. 165 

CHAPTER IX 

Mr. Clay and the War of 1812.— His Position and Influence in the 
War. — A Leader. — " Free Trade and Seamen's Rights." — Peace of 
Ghent. 181 

CHAPTER X 

Mr. Clay on Domestic Slavery. — His Feelings as a Man, and his 
Principles as a Statesmen, on this Subject. Mr. Clay an Emanci- 
pationist. — His Position. — Political Abolition in Free States. — Mr, 
Clay's Views of it 208 

CHAPTER XI 

Mr. Clay the Advocate of Universal Freedom.— British Claims 
to Monopoly in Philanthropy.— Letter of Richard Rush to Mr. Clay. 
—Mr. (May the First, and at last the Successful Advocate of South 
American Independence.— History of his Action on that Subject. — 
Greece 232 



CONTENTS OF VOLUME I. ui 

CHAPTER XII 

FASa 

The Cause of Great Effects.— Debate on the Seminole Cam- 
paign.— Position of Mr. Monroe and his Cabinet on that Question. 
—An Attempt to defame Mr. Monroe,- Mr. Clay's denunciation of 
General Jackson's Conduct 274 

CHAPTER XIII 

The Missouri Question.— Its Nature and Importance.— Agitates the 
Country.— Excitement m Congress. — Attempts to arrest the 
Extension of Slavery.— Continuance and Danger of the Contro- 
versy.— Mr. Clay's Efforts for Compromise,— His Sway in Congress. 
—His Success 298 

CHAPTER XIV 

The Great Conspiracy,— General Jackson's renewal of the Charge 
against Mr. Clay in 1844.— Statement of the Charge.— Present Posi- 
tion of the Question,— Mr. Adam's Eighth-of-January Party m 
honor of General Jackson.— Its Effect —Nomination of General 
Jackson for the Presidency.— The Result— Examination of the 
Claims to Plurality of Votes,— Mr. Clay defrauded.— Character of 
the Jackson Party,— Delicacy of Mr. Clay's Position in the House 
of Representatives on the Presidential Question,— Menaces,— First 
Opening of the Plot,— Mr. Kremer's Letter to the Columbian 
Observer.— Mr. Clay's Card.— Mr. Kremer's Card.- Mr. Clay's 
Appeal to the House.— Mr. Forsyth's Resolution for a Committee 
of Inquiry.— The Debate,— Report of the Committee,— Mr. 
Kremer's Decline to answer.— Unexpected Position of Affairs.— 
Who wrote Mr. Kremer's Letter of Decline.— Position of the Con- 
spirators and Mr. Clay at the End of the First Stage. . . .309 

CHAPTER XV 

The Great Conspiracy.— General Jackson comes out as the Public 
Accuser of Mr. Clay.— The FayettevilleLetter.— General Jackson's 
Letter to Carter Beverley.— The Manner of its being made public. 
—Mr. Clay's Reply to it in an Address to the Public— General 
Jackson's Address to the Public— These Documents considered. . 340 



CHAPTER XVI 

The Great Conspiracy,— Mr. Buchanan's Answer to General Jack- 
son, — Mr, Markley's Reply to Mr Buchanan — Major Eaton's Letter 
on the same Subject, — Letters of Mr. Buchanan to the United 
States Telegraph.— Extracts from Mr. Clay's Address to the Public 
in December, 1837.— The Conspirators Tried by their own Evi- 
dence ^"^^ 



iV CONTENTS OF VOLUME I. 

CHAPTER XVII 

PAGB 

The Great CoNSPraxcY.— Mr. Clay's Position in the Case. — The 
Voice of many Witnesses.— Proof of a Negative. .... 396 



CHAPTER XVIII 

The Great Conspiract.— Unity of the Plot,— Another Question. 
— Witnesses. — Singular Result. — Truth of the Whole Matter. — 
Proposals of Bargain made to Mr. Clay. — One through Mr. Buch- 
anan. — One through General Houston. — Crime and Consequences 
of the Plot 426 



CHAPTER XIX 

Mr. Clay's Internal Improvement Policy.— The American Sys- 
tem. — Objects of Internal Improvement. — The Great Barrier be- 
tween the East and West. — Cumberland Road. — The Policy 
Modified by Opposition, but Triumphant. 450 



CHAPTER XX 

Mr. Clay's Public Land Policy.— His Report in 1832.— Reasons of 
its Reference to the Committee on Manufactures. — Statistical 
Tables. — Extracts from Mr. Clay's Speeches. — General Jackson's 
Pocketing the Land Bill. — The Ai'gument 475 



CHAPTER XXI 

Political Character op Mr. Clay's Times.— Mr. Clay a Jefferson- 
ian Democrat.— Democratic and Regal Power of the Constitution. 
—Influence of Names in Politics.— The Government of the United 
States a Democracy. — Who are the True Democrats. — The Efifect 
of the Alien and Sedition Laws in rousing the Democracy. — Mr. 
Clay's Claims to Democracy. His Denial of Democracy to his 
Opi)onents.— Jefferson not the Father of Democracy. — Democracy 
the Genius of the American People. — Reign of Democracy from 
Jefferson to J Q. Adams, inclusive. — Regal Power rose with 
General Jackson.— Mr. Clay's Great Struggle against Regal Power, 
and for the Defence of Democracy 507 



Introduction by Thomas B. Reed 



COPYRIGHT, 1896 
BY 

THOMAS E. O'SHEA 



INTRODUCTION 

Henry Clay, of Kentucky, was, for more than forty 
years, the most picturesque and remarkable figure 
in American politics. That he was refused the highest 
office in the gift of the people was not perhaps to their 
credit, but it was very much to their credit that he 
held such a sway in their councils for so many years. 

The review of his life which is presented in the 
biographical volumes of the work to which these few 
words are an introduction, was written by one of those 
devoted friends which it was the not unusual good 
fortune of Mr. Clay to attach to himself by bonds which 
increased in strength as years went by, and which 
were not loosened even by death itself. That a vig- 
orous, strenuous and stormy life should have had a 
defender so undoubting, and an admirer so sympathetic 
is unfortunate neither for truth nor for history. 

Of the remaining volumes, those which contain 
his speeches show Mr. Clay as he appeared to the 
whole world, discussing with frankness, vigor and 
power every great question which agitated the Amer- 
ican Republic from those early days when we were 
enlarging our boundaries to the southward, and making 
complete our connections with the Atlantic and the 
GuLf, to those later days when our Pacific empire, 
destined sometime to be our greatest, was but just 

6 



6 INTRODUCTION 

'^"h owing itself faintly against the setting sun; an 
empire then separated from us by three months of 
distance, by unpeopled deserts, and hostile and war- 
like tribes. 

These speeches cover a vast range of subjects, all of 
vital importance to the development of the Republic, 
and exhibit statesmanship of a rare order, far seeing, 
full of regard for remote consequences, and yet equally 
full of a tactful appreciation of the temporary difficul- 
ties which barred the way and which had to be removed, 
because otherwise neither the present nor the future 
could have enjoyed the advantages of the action pro- 
posed. 

The speeches of a statesman who is under the inexor- 
able necessity of bringing things to pass, suffer much 
with the lapse of time. The next generation even, reads 
them with but little knowledge of the obstacles to be 
overcome, the temporary prejudices to be removed, and 
the existing rivalries which introduce upon the scene a 
purely personal element, the memory of which has 
almost utterly passed away. It is here that reformers 
and men of letters have so manifest an advantage. 
These speakers and writers have so few limitations that 
they can utter the truths of all time, regardless of the 
prejudice of the hour, and can present arguments in 
their full and undiminished strength, leaving the future 
to understand what the present cannot comprehend. It 
was said that eloquence was cheap at anti-slavery 
meetings, and well it might be, for any man, at any 
time, can to the extent of his ability easily have 
unlimited power for the present, who is regardless 
of his yesterday and careless of his to-morrow. It 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 7 

is far otherwise with a speaker who is dealing 
with men who not only have their own prejudices, 
but those also of the people whom they represent, 
and of the party with which they are connected. He 
must avoid many arguments which are sound and 
which would be appreciated in history, and must avoid 
them because for the time they do not convince. To 
answer an opponent's argument is one thing ; to con- 
vince him, quite another. Milton's Defence of the 
Liberty of Unlicensed Printing, that glorious arsenal of 
arguments for liberty, which move from premise to 
conclusion like the march of an army with banners, 
had no effect on the people to whom it was addressed 
and preceded by a hundred years the actual freedom of 
the press. Whatever Clay and men in like position 
say, must suffer from this element of temporary ex- 
igency, the significance and influence of which is lost in 
the capacious maw of all-devouring time. We cannot 
by the most careful study find out all the circumstances 
which made the speaker understate an argument which 
now seems to have been so guarded as to lose much of 
its possible force; nor can we know what obstacle 
caused another argument to stop short of its legitimate 
and triumphant conclusion. While the student may go 
very far towards understanding these circumstances 
and obstacles, yet even to him it is the substitution of 
imagination for feeling, and his sensations have none of 
the vividness which comes from truths and arguments 
which are not for the moment but for all time. The 
ordinary reader puzzles himself with few of these 
things, and soon finds his interest relax as he pores 
over arguments and phrases devoted to facts which are 



^ 



8 INTRODUCTION 

Lalf forgotten, and to situations which have grown dim 
7 because the history of the country has long passed by 
them and passed by even their consequences. The 
speeches of Edmund Burke himself, though in their 
utterance so much of the present was sacrificed for the 
future, are much more talked of than read, even by men 
of culture and lovers of literary beauty. 

Mr. Clay's speeches suffer from another cause, one 
which will seem strange until reflection convinces. 
They suffer from his fame as an orator. Perhaps no 
man in his day and generation and very few men in any 
day and generation ever so moved large masses of men. 
His power, however, was not confined to crowds and 
tumultuous assemblies. He was even more potent in 
the House of Representatives, in Courts of Justice, and 
in the Senate itself, though there surrounded by men 
second in fame only to himself. The secret of his 
powder was in his wonderful personality, his courage 
which feared no peril and shrank from no emergency. 
He seemed to be so entirely equal to all emergencies 
and so sure of himself, that he made all others sure of 
his final success. In person he was tall and majestic. 
His bearing was high and his courtesy was lofty. Re- 
specting himself, he made every other man respect him. 
His voice had a melody and strength which have never 
been surpassed. When he spoke he was so absorbed 
in his subject, so determined that his hearers should go 
with him, that in his younger days, at least, the whole 
man spoke vibrant with the emotion which filled his 
entire being. When you add to this a masterful mind, 
frankness and a strong character, great reasoning power 
and an invincible determination, you can form some 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 6 

idea of his power over audiences in the days when the 
orator was the great teacher of the multitude and 
swayed the destinies of a country. 

Almost all these personal qualities — except perhaps 
in one passage which will be specifically referred to — 
have disappeared from the printed words, and men have 
sought in vain for the causes of the remarkable results 
which Mr. Clay produced when the subject, the audi- 
ence and the occasion called forth his mighty powers. 
Hence it is a common subject of observation that Mr. 
Clay's speeches are not equal to his great fame as an 
orator. This is true. But it was true also in a lesser 
degree of Demosthenes ; Aeschines, his great rival, meant 
something of the sort when in banishment he said to 
his pupils who admired the Oration on the Crown: 
"You should have heard the lion himself." Unfor- 
tunately, this notion that the speeches are not equal to 
the orator's fame, has been carried so far that men com- 
monly think that they are unworthy of his fame. But 
this is not so. The speeches which are reprinted in the 
two volumes in this set, are replete, not only with wis- 
dom and sound sense, high statesmanship and great 
power, but with passages which for beauty of diction 
cannot be surpassed. 

It would far exceed the limits of this introduction to 
specify the excellences here broadly asserted, because 
the speeches are so numerous and upon such a great 
variety of subjects, and cover so large a period of time, 
that the smallest catalogue of passages to be specially 
alluded to would be unjustifiable. Moreover, the bio- 
graphy has such ample quotations, which illustrate what 
has been said, that the catalogue, if attempted, would 



10 INTRODUCTION 

be but a reduplication. Only one reference can be 
permitted, and that is justified by the fact that Mr. 
(/lay himself regarded the passage, to use his own 
words, as the one " which produced the most electrify- 
ing effect of anything I ever uttered." The passage may 
be found in the second volume of the Biography, page 
372, and in the second volume of the Speeches, page 
294. The whole speech, which was short and in reply 
to Mr. Rives, of Virginia, was evidently unpremeditated 
and is full of very great beauty and power. 

Mr. Clay's first speech was very appropriately in de- 
fence of Domestic Manufactures. His next was " On the 
Line of the Perdido," a speech able, strong and closely 
reasoned, a remarkable effort for a young man of 
thirty-three and still well worth reading in connection 
with the speech on the Spanish Treaty, Vol. 5, p. 206, 
as a reminder of the early history of the Republic and 
of some strange mistakes we made while we were ob- 
taining our southern bounderies, trading as we did, 
Texas and many real millions and more contingent 
millions for Florida alone, and running no little risk of 
not getting the whole of that. Besides the first speech 
oil Domestic Manufactures there are no less than nine 
others scattered through the two volumes, all of which 
deserve to be read by the student of Political Economy 
and by the statesmen of to-day. That of April 26, 1820, 
found in the fifth volume, p. 218, is a full and careful 
resume of the subject, but it is surpassed by the speech 
of March 30, 1824, Vol. 5, p. 255, which contains in a 
remarkable way the germs at least of all the arguments 
which are presented in behalf of protection to-day. It 
is somewhat startling to read in a speech delivered 



BY THOMAS B. REED. H 

jaeventy-one years ago an exact description of the 
condition of this country in the year of our Lord 
1896. Hardly a word needs to be changed to make 
the picture drawn in 1824 pass for the picture of 
1896. It shows in a very vivid way how like causes 
produce like effects. In 1824 this countiy had the 
blessings of modified Free Trade as it has to-day. In 
1824 Mr. Clay was urging Protection as a remedy for 
the distress and sorrow which rested upon the country. 
Fortunately, his eloquent activity was crowned with 
success ; so that he was enabled to furnish in his speech 
of Feb. 2, 1832, eight years afterwards, a companion 
picture to that of 1824. The reader will find it in 
Vol. 5, p. 440, and the reader will also find that he has 
in the description of the state of the country in 1832 
under Protection,a life-like view of the country in 1892, 
also under Protection. It is not perhaps worth while 
to point out all the particulars wherein history repeats 
itself, but it is well to notice that the arguments which 
Mr. Clay answers arising out of the very prosperity 
and well filled Treasury echoed down through the 
years from 1888 to 1892. It seems as if men could 
never be persuaded in any age of the world to let well 
enough alone, and were always sinning against light. 
A careful perusal of the speeches referred to may lead 
to much practical wisdom. 

In the compromise tariff measures of 1833, which were 
to some extent a yielding to that misbehavior of a 
minority which was so eloquently rebuked in the speech 
of 1832, Mr. Clay was at first accused of abandoning 
the cause of Protection, but in reality he was at that 
time its savior, as well as at all times its steadfast 



12 INTRODUCTION 

frienrl. At that time he had two foes with whom to 
contend : General Jackson and Calhoun. It was hard 
to choose. If Jackson had hung Calhoun and inaugu- 
rated civil war the liberties of the country might have 
been in gi'eat danger. They would certainly have been 
much at Jackson's mercy. If General Jackson had in- 
stigated openly, as he probably did secretly, a worse 
measure than the compromise, then Protection would 
have been lost. In the volumes of biography and the 
speeches can be seen a full description of one of the most 
interesting and dangerous crises in American History. 

The history of internal improvements is nowhere 
better told than in the speeches here recorded. In 
nothing is the statesmanship of Mr. Clay more clearly 
shown than in the view he took of the paramount ne- 
cessity of a system of internal improvements. Even in 
his early days this country was so vast and so inaccess- 
ible that her progress depended upon an increase of 
means of communication, and while other men were 
struggling with their own inertia and mistaking it for 
the Constitution, Clay saw not only the utility but the 
absolute necessity of straining every power to bind the 
Union together. He foresaw that in order to forward 
civilization and to make the country habitable, all 
methods of communication must be pushed to the full 
extent of our power. Ha})pily for this country the 
railroad came in and helped us to solve the problem 
more speedily than Clay ever dreamed, and realized his 
hopes by a means he had not foreseen. In light of the 
present, with the wonderful means of inter-communica- 
ion to-day before our eyes, it seems passing strange that 
Mr. Clay should have encountered such opposition to 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 18 



his scheme of internal improvements. But conservatism 
was never a stronger force in the world than at the time 
the experiment of nationality was made by the United 
States. Local self government and local power then 
seemed as much of a necessity as if the separate States 
were separate nations. Hence every suggestion of the 
extension by the National Grovemment of its usefulness 
was scrutinized as if it were the proposition of a 
hostile power. The speech of March 13, 1818, Vol. 5, 
p. 116, is not only a history of the obstacles thrown in 
the way of internal improvements by famous men, but 
is a very striking example of the skill with which Mr. 
Clay met and overcame great difficulties. Mr. Jefferson 
had expressed himself against the power to prosecute 
internal improvements. Mr. Madison by exercising 
the veto power had placed himself on the same side, 
and President Monroe had taken with swiftness the 
opportunity of his message to the fifteenth Congress 
at its first session, to announce his adoption of Mi-. 
Madison's declared opinion. The fact that all three of 
these great men acknowledged the need of such a power 
and advised a constitutional amendment,gave additional 
force to their combined opinion against the present 
existence of the power in the National Govern ment. 
But the speech of Mr. Clay was so cogent, his ai-gu- 
ments so strong, and above all so skillfully adjusted to 
the thoughts of members, that he prevailed by the 
decisive vote of ninety to seventy-five against all 
opposition and against the administration which was 
then in the full strength of its first year. 

The question is so thoroughly and finally settled in 
these days that the great struggle which has to be 



14 INTRODUCTION 

made is over the distribution of the sum to be appro- 
priated, and the great danger which has to be looked 
after, is the liability of exceeding the revenues of the 
country. Notwithstanding this settlement these 
speeches on internal improvements are necessary 
studies for those who are students of history and 
especially for those interested in the art of persuasive 
speaking. 

Perhaps the most decisive service which Mr. Clay 
rendered his country was his successful advocacy of the 
war of 1812. It was of course a grave and serious 
undertaking for us to attack the great country which 
was then holding Napoleon at bay. But the fact that 
slie was then thus occupied was our opportunity. We 
had been treated by Great Britain with an injustice 
which makes the dullest reader indignant even to this 
day. But the injustice which we suffered was noth- 
ing compared to the insult and indignity which were 
put upon us. We had reached a point where not 
only our rights but our self respect demanded decided 
action. 

The speeches in Volume 5, commencing at page 35 
and ending with page 73, and the review of the State 
of the Nation, commencing on page 83 with the intro- 
ductory notes, explain not only Mr. Clay's share in the 
determination to make war, but his participation 
in the settlement of the questions on which peace 
depended. 

His skill as an orator and statesman was amply 
supplemented by his skill in diplomacy. By the war 
itself, our warlike fame, except at sea and at the 
battle of New Orleans, was not much heightened, but 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 15 

the purposes of the war were all accomplished. After 
that war we took our real place among nations. 
Mr. Clay was the most conspicuous figure in this 
whole transaction, and deserves to be remembered so 
long as that event remains prominent in the history 
of the country. 

Mr. Clay made five speeches on the subjects involved 
in the revolt of the South American Colonies ao;ainst 
Spain. The emancipation of South America was very 
dear to his heart, and he advocated it with great 
vigor and great persistence. 

He began his labors in 1817 by a speech on the Bill 
for enforcing neutrality, in which his sympathies played 
a larger part than his judgment. In 1820 he had the 
satisfaction of passing in the House of Representa- 
tives a resolution declaring it expedient to provide 
salaries for ministers to any of the South American 
governments maintaining their independence of Spain. 
This resolution, reported to the President in an 
unusual way by the committee headed by Mr. Clay 
himself, gave the cause a signal victory. Two years 
afterwards South American Independence was recog- 
nized, so far as the action of the House of Repre- 
sentatives was concerned, with only one dissenting 
voice. 

The same feeling which impelled Mr. Clay to 
champion the cause of the South American Republics 
led him to support Mr, Webster's resolution looking 
to the appointment of an Agent or Commissioner to 
Greece during the pendency of the Greek Revolution. 
This he did in the speech printed in Vol. 5, page 246, 
extracts from which have ever since adorned our school 



16 INTRODUCTION 

boolcH and been subjects of declamation in every school 
liouse in the country. The combined efforts of 
We})8ter and Clay were not able to compel the sup- 
port of the House, but were undoubtedly of important 
service in a moral way to the cause of Greek Inde- 
pendence. 

On page 181 of the fifth volume begins the speech 
which was the most fruitful of consequences, both to 
Mr. Clay and to the country, of any in the two volumes, 
the speech on the Seminole War. In this speech, cer- 
tain lawless acts of General Jackson were fully 
depicted, and the speech itself was the beginning of 
woes unnumbered. In its train of consequences came 
the life-long war between the two great men. In point 
of reason and sound sense Mr. Clay had greatly the 
advantage, and he entered upon his task from a high 
sense of duty. But he miscalculated the force of the 
sentiment which refuses to reason where war is con- 
cerned, and only asks which side our country is on, 
extending to all agents who wear uniform the protec- 
tion which belongs to the country. Mr. Clay was not 
the only statesmen who has miscalculated the power of 
this sentiment. Palmerston's war with China, which 
had nothing in its origin whereby it could be defended, 
thrust out of Parliament Cobden and Bright in the 
zenith of their fame. In this case of the Seminole war 
tJie Administration came to the help of GeneralJackson, 
and the resolutions were defeated by large majorities. 
This controversy involved Mr. Calhoun, who, as a 
member of Monroe's Cabinet, had strongly disapproved 
of General Jackson's course. In due time, by the kind 
agency of Mr. Van Buren, General Jackson was 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 17 

informed of Mr. Calhoun's action in the Cabinet. 
This was one cause of the readiness of the General 
afterwards to contemplate the hanging of Mr. Calhoun, 
when nullification became a probable issue. In the 
two volumes devoted to speeches there are at least a 
dozen devoted to General Jackson, only one of which 
led to a decided victory for Mr. Clay. The victorious 
speech was the one which begins on page 633 of the fifth 
volume and concerns our relations with France. 

The losing fight which Mr. Clay fought against 
General Jackson and the system of government which 
he and his successor had established, was not a losing 
fight on account of any lack of skill and ability on the 
part of Mr. Clay. All the elements were against him. 
He was in advance of the times in which he lived. 
The times were more suited to the rough and unscrupu- 
lous methods of Jackson, whose doctrine of spoils, the 
evil of which was not then appreciated, was much more 
agreeable to the people of the United States than a 
civil system dependent upon merit which had no politi- 
cal origin. After General Jackson had passed off the 
stage, Mr. Clay and his party, after a victory up to that 
time entirely unparalleled, fell into the hands of John 
Tyler and into the bottomless pit of treachery. Hence 
one may safely say that the greater part of Mr. Clay's 
life was spent in defeat and with the vanquished. But 
his courage never failed. He kept on with his work, 
listening to no discouragements, and up to the very last 
moment of his life was doing every day the duty of the 
hour. 

This quarrel with Jackson, of which the speech on 
the Seminole war was the beginning, led to what Mr. 



18 INTRODUCTION 

Colton calls the "Great Conspiracy," which darkened 
the life of Henry Clay for many years, — the charge of 
" Bargain and Corruption." 

In 1^24, the Electoral Colleges had cast 99 votes for 
General Jackson, 84 for Mr. Adams, 41 for Mr. Craw- 
ford and 37 for Mr. Clay. Under the Constitution 
the election was devolved upon the House of Rep- 
resentatives, of which Mr. Clay was a member. Mr. 
Clay himself could not be a candidate since only the 
three highest. General Jackson, Mr. Adams and Mr. 
Crawford could be voted for. Between the General 
and Mr. Clay the relations had been strained ever 
since the speech on the Seminole war. Mr. Clay 
thought General Jackson a dangerous man, and had 
taken occasion even before he left Kentucky to express 
his determination to vote for Mr. Adams, should the 
rumor prove true that Mr. Crawford was, by illness, 
incapable of performing the duties of the great office 
for which he was a candidate. Mr. Clay ascertained 
by a personal visit that this rumor was founded in 
fact. It was soon discovered that the result of the 
election in the House would turn upon the votes of 
Mr. Clay and his friends. He and they were there- 
fore the subjects of very much interested courtesy and 
expressed esteem. To use Mr. Clay's own words he was 
" enjoying while alive, the posthumous honors which 
are usually awarded to the venerated dead." Of course 
Mr. Clay's intentions and those of his friends in a 
short time became known, to the disappointment of the 
Jackson men, whose disappointment was perhaps 
greater because they really never had any grounds 
for hope. Then appeared one of those communications 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 1» 

which are of so little consequence in our day, charging 
anonymously in the columns of a newspaper, " bargain 
and corruption." Mr. Clay immediately went into 
print with a card which bristled with injudicious 
wrath and the charge acquired a dignity which nobody 
else could have given it. A Mr. Kremer, a member of 
Congress from Pennsylvania, in response to the card 
acknowledged himself to be the author of the charge 
a,nd promised to prove it. When the committee was 
raised to hear the proof he retired behind his privilege. 
Anyone who desires to see how a base charge, without 
either foundation or sense, can be kept alive and 
flourishing for many years will find most interesting 
the description of this charge of bargain and cor- 
ruption to be found in the first volume of this work, 
wherein are described its origin, revival and survival, a 
most surprising example of the vigor of a lie well stuck 
to. Starting with absolutely nothing in the way of 
proof and accumulating none in its course, it survived 
the most direct and decided negative ever proven in 
history. Mr. Clay's own speech in relation to this 
charge of bargain and corruption will be found in the 
fifth volume, page 342. At page 300 begins an address 
to his constituents on the same subject, dated March 26, 
1825. Both are well worth reading, if only to see how 
a base charge against himself can be handled by a great 
man with dignity and self-respect. 

Of Mr. Clay's speeches on the slavery question it is 
not necessary to speak at length. They are well worth 
the reading, not only as part of the history of a trying 
time, but as examples of how difficult is the moderate 
course which is almost always the path of sense at the 



20 INTRODUCTION 

time, but which always seems shortsighted when one 
has had the advantage of seeing the outcome and can 
review the whole story. Mr. Clay was himself a 
Southern man brought up with all the surroundings of a 
Southern man, and appreciated how thoroughly slavery 
was interwoven with the fibre of the Southern social and 
industrial life. But he always felt the wrong and the 
utterly unjustifiable nature of bondage, and was always 
hoping for some escape. In order to understand the 
feelings of a man of that generation, it is very useful 
to remember how long Abraham Lincoln, whose speech 
about the house divided against itself was the prophecy 
of the death of slavery, clung to the idea of compen- 
sated abolition. In that he was but following the 
feelings of a lifetime, feelings which had outlived alike 
the logic of Mr. Lincoln's speeches, and the logic of 
events. The idea of colonization took strong hold on 
Mr. Clay's mind, for he realized more clearly than did 
we of the North the terrible difficulties of the upward 
movement of the negro, while he and the white 
race remained together; difficulties which the negro 
is now encountering, and which he will finally sur- 
mount. 

Mr. Clay was undoubtedly wrong in his colonization 
schemes, but his efforts were born of a true love of 
liberty and an honest desire to save his country from 
what seemed to him a fate not to be endured. Mean- 
time wiser than all our wisdom, the march of events 
has decreed that we shall have the negro grow up side 
by side with his former master and, what makes his 
future problem the more difficult, alongside those who 
never owned slaves. At every step of his improvement 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 21 

he will be opposed, not because lie remains really- 
degraded, but because he is really improving. 

In the days when the ancestors of some of us were 
ceasing to be villeins and serfs and were becoming 
freemen, they undoubtedly offended the gentlemen 
most when most they resembled them. 

Among the remaining speeches worth examining will 
be found three on the Public Lands, Volume 5, page 
488 and Volume 6, pages 27 and 227, of which the last 
is perhaps the ablest. Mr. Clay's attention was first 
turned to public lands by a piece of sharp manoeuver- 
ing on the part of his enemies. He was Chairman 
of the Committee on Manufactures in the Senate, and 
as such had referred to him, against his protests, the 
whole question of the public lands. 

Of course his committee did not have charge of such 
questions, but it was thought that if this great subject, 
then much agitated between the old States who for- 
merly owned the lands, and the new States, within the 
limits of which the lands actually were, could be put 
upon Mr. Clay, any plan he formulated would be sure 
to offend one side or the other. Mr. Clay, however, 
addressed himself to the task and proposed a scheme 
which did justice to both, and thereupon the Senate 
referred the question to the Committee of Public 
Lands, where it ought to have gone in the first instance. 

This plan, relating to the Public Lands, he unfolded 
in the first of the speeches referred to. In the last he 
devoted himself to a careful discussion of the whole 
question, occupying the larger part of two days in 
presenting the views which he entertained. More than 
two hundred speeches are printed in the two volumes 



22 INTRODUCTION 

aTid these speeches cover a great variety of subjects 
which will not be particularized. It would not be 
possible to enumerate them all ; or even to allude to 
them all. In the speech on the Sub-Treasury, Volume 
6, pages 123-4, will be found a very sharp and pungent 
description of Mr. Calhoun, still well worth reading. 
What has come down to us of the speech at the 
Harrison Convention of August 17, 1840, makes us 
regret the limitations of the art of reporting as it 
existed in those days. Enough has come to us to 
show that Mr. Clay was on that occasion in much more 
cheerful and exultant mood than at most periods of his 
life and was probably at his best. 

Mr. Clay was in private life from 1842 to 1849, and 
made but few speeches. These are noticed in the 
third volume with liberal extracts from each. Among 
them will be found his views on the Mexican War, to 
which he gave utterance at Lexington, Nov. 13, 1847. 

Mr. Clay's parliamentary career was resumed in 
December, 1849. 

He had been sent back to the Senate by his old 
constituents and remained a Senator until he died. 
The thirty-first Congress, which may almost be said to 
have witnessed the termination of his long and illus- 
trious career, was the second Congress of General 
Taylor's presidential term, and was agitated by the 
premonitory throes of the terrible storm of Civil War 
which burst upon the country ten years later. Mr. 
Clay foresaw as a politician the same future which Mr. 
Lincoln foresaw as a philosopher. Mr. Lincoln knew 
that there was no escape, because there could be no 
lasting compromise. Mr. Clay felt that if present 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 23 

exigencies could be met the future might offer some 
hope. Accordingly he addressed himself in his old age 
to the greatest task of his life. The task was in no- 
wise unworthy of him, and its execution occupied his 
remaining years. What was called the Compromise of 
1850 was the work of Henry Clay. It probably 
ensured a truce for ten years between the North and 
South. During that truce the country so throve, on 
account of the great gold discoveries, that it was 
possible to undergo the dreadful strain of the Civil 
War and come out not only victorious but prosperous. 

Mr. Clay's speeches during this period are very 
valuable to the student of politics, for they are very 
fi'ank and open statements of the condition of public 
sentiment on both sides. 

Any review of Mr. Clay's speeches, although as 
limited as this one necessarily is, would be incomplete 
without referring the reader to the reply to Mr. Mend- 
enhall, Volume 6, page 385. This reply was made in 
1842, in Indiana, to the bearer of a petition to Mr. Clay 
praying him to emancipate his slaves. It was pre- 
sented to him before a great multitude and was meant 
to wreck him on the Scylla or Charybdis of North or 
South. This great danger was Mr. Clay's great oppor- 
tunity, and from the time when he took Mr. Menden- 
hall under his protection against the justly indignant 
multitude until he dismissed him as Uncle Toby did 
the fly, not a word was uttered which any man on 
either side the line could fairly challenge. This was 
accomplished, not by any concealment or evasion, but 
by frankness and candor. 

The private correspondence reprinted in the fourth 



24 INTRODUCTION 

volume of the set contains much which lights up the poli- 
tics with which Mr. Clay and his party were concerned. 
It reveals many hidden springs of action and makes us 
understand the doubts and hesitations wMch attend all 
important human determinations, and which never get 
into history in any other way. The letter of Gallatin 
on page 30, with that of Crawford, then Minister to 
France, which follows it on page 33, shows the very 
great difficulties which the victories of the Allies on the 
European Continent had placed in the way of our 
negotiations for the peace which closed the war of 1812, 
and makes apparent the soundness of the early action 
of our envoys. So impossible seemed peace, by negotia- 
tions, that our Commissioners used all the earlier 
movements of diplomacy to fire the patriotic hearts of 
their own countrymen and to consolidate all classes in 
favor of the vigorous prosecution of the war as tlie only 
road to a solid peace. It so happened that in this way 
they build ed better than they knew, and that what 
seemed likely to make the war more vigorous made 
peace more accessible. 

The letters of Mr. Clay to Brooke, page 114, and to 
Crawford, page 192, explain why the offer of the 
Secretaryship of State, under Mr. Adams, was ac- 
cepted, and with others of the letters printed throw much 
light upon the charge upon which General Jackson 
loved to linger. As evidence of Mr. Clay's treatment of 
unsuitable proposals, the correspondence relating to the 
letter which was written by Mr. Crawford, page 273, 
proposing a distribution of offices, can still be read with 
interest. 

Mr. Crawford, it should be said, was in his last days 



BY THOMAS B. REED. "W 

a paralytic, and although entrusted with an important 
judicial office, of which he is reputed to have performed 
the duties satisfactorily, was undoubtedly a mental 
and physical wreck. Indeed, one phrase in one of the 
letters intimates as much. Nevertheless, Mr. Clay was 
evidently troubled by the letter, while he treated it with 
due disregard and contempt. 

The correspondence between Mr. Clay and General 
Taylor, and that which passed between Mr. Clay and 
his friends during the election of 1848, are also very 
interesting. Mr. Clay was then in a position of great 
personal embarrassment. Besides his own direct inter- 
est in the situation, which was not slight, he was in 
natural antagonism to Greneral Taylor, who represented 
that sentiment in favor of the rule of successful military 
chieftains against which Mr. Clay had always sounded 
the most indignant protest. To have a President whose 
sole claim to the honor arose from distinguished military 
service, and whose future action on the field of states- 
manship was wholly problematical, was sufficiently 
galling in itself, but to have him chosen by the Whig 
Party on a platform of " no party," was something to 
which none of the great Whig leaders could reconcile 
themselves, and least of all Mr. Clay. 

The correspondence printed in Volume 4, which 
relates to the Convention of 1848, when General Taylor 
was nominated, is a revelation of the uncertainties 
which environ politics and political men. The very 
politicians, whose letters and urgencies had caused Mr. 
Clay, then an old man of seventy, to allow his name to 
be once more presented to a party convention, were 
almost the first to desert him when they should in 



96 INTRODUCTION 

honor have stayed with him to the end. But the 
epoch which Mr. Clay adorned had about passed away. 
He was to make one more great effort and do one 
more great service to the country and then leave to 
the next generation the final settlement of the great 
issues. It was not in the infinite purpose that he 
should be President of the United States. When no 
human obstacle could have prevented an election, 
General Harrison received the nomination ; when the 
next opportunity was before him it was not the ingrat- 
itude of his party or even its bad judgment which lost 
him the coveted prize. It was his own indiscretion 
in the promulgation in new phraseology, of opinions 
which he had always held and to which the public had 
become reconciled in the old form but disliked in the 
new. In a multitude of counsellors there is wisdom, 
says one of the passages in Scripture ; but that must 
have been in days when none but wise men were per- 
mitted to give counsel. In those days of Mr. Clay there 
were evidently more counsellors than ever before, but 
hardly more wisdom. Mr. Clay undoubtedly yielded 
to advice and wrecked himself and his party. 

I have thus far endeavored by description alone to 
give some idea of the contents of these volumes and of 
tlieir value and importance to the student of American 
History and of American Politics. Of course the idea 
conveyed by the somewhat dry list of speeches and 
letters is entirely inadequate even for the purpose in- 
tended. It is not possible without making the intro- 
duction a biography to show the value of the work. 
Fortunately, the career of Henry Clay is known in 
some degree to all Americans, and that career is what 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 27 

makes these volumes valuable. Nevertheless, well 
known as he still is and filling as he used, all mouths 
with either praise or blame, the details of his life are 
undergoing that compression which the space which 
history, ever crowded, can give to any man, however 
eminent, demands ; consequently, few men to-day re- 
member the number and variety of places which he 
filled, the employments he had and the struggles and 
conflicts in which he participated, in all of which he 
was easily chief even if his army was seldom vic- 
torious. 

His political life began when he was 27, and he 
died in harness, at 75. Of that long period of forty- 
eight years only six were passed in private life, if that 
period can be called private life during which Mr. 
Clay, who attracted so much friendship as well as so 
much obloquy from men entirely unknown to him, was 
a candidate almost victorious for the Presidency of 
the United States. 

At the age of 27, Mr. Clay was elected to the Legis- 
lature of Kentucky, a representative in the popular 
branch. When he was not yet thii*ty years of age, he 
was appointed a Senator of the United States for an 
unexpired term and took his seat and performed the 
functions of a Senator before he was, under the Consti- 
tution of the Country, entitled so to do. Mr. Winthrop 
tells us that Mr. Clay did not like to have that youthful 
indiscretion alluded to, and perhaps for that reason 
some of the orators who paid their tributes to him after 
his death, left the date of his birth uncertain. In 1807, 
the next year, he was again chosen to his old place in 
the Legislature and became Speaker of the House. It 



28 INTRODUCTION 

was in this position that he exhibited his skill and 
leadership against a wild majority, which was deter- 
mined to suppress all English legal precedents as destruc- 
tive to liberty. By an amendment, limiting the bill to 
the period subsequent to the Revolution, he outmancBU- 
vi'ed the schemers and saved to Kentucky jurisprudence 
the learning of English law books. The next year he 
encountered both in the Legislature and on the field of 
honor, Mr. Humphrey Marshall. In the duel both were 
wounded slightly, and in the debate Mr. Clay was 
easily victorious. 

The next year Mr. Clay was elected for two years to 
the Senate, where he had an opportunity to champion 
domestic manufactures and to furnish his opponents for 
many years afterwards with arguments against the 
United States Bank. When his Senatorial term ex- 
pired, he came to the House of Representatives at 
Washington and was at once chosen Speaker, a distinc- 
tion never before or since conferred upon a new 
member under like circumstances. Mr. Clay was 34 
years old when he was thus signally honored. In 
November, 1811, the agitation for war with Great 
Britain began. To that and to the preparations for 
war, Mr. Clay devoted himself, speaking on the bill 
to raise troops and on the bill to increase the navy^ 
and was in every way the life and soul of the 
War party. The following June, after a controversy 
with Randolph, he found time in a letter to the Intelli- 
gencer to lay down the parliamentary law relating to 
the question of consideration, which has ever since gov- 
erned the House. The war message which came from 
Madison in June, 1812, was the result of the urgent 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 29 

demand of Clay. After war was declared, Clay was 
offered by the President the chief command of the 
army, but the position was declined. Of the next 
House Mr. Clay was chosen Speaker, and in 1814 he 
resigned that honor to accept the place of Commissioner 
to negotiate for peace, in conjunction with Albert Gal- 
latin, John Quincy Adams, James A. Bayard and Jona- 
than Russell. The Commissioners spent five months in 
discussing the terms of the treaty of peace called the 
Treaty of Ghent, and while the written result disposed 
of very few of the disputed questions, the practical 
result disposed of them all. In 1815 Mr. Clay was 
elected to Congress again, and was again chosen Speaker 
by a vote of 87 out of 122, thirteen being the highest 
vote received by any other candidate. The next year he 
made a speech in defense of the war, which remains one 
of the best histories of that important event. This was 
the year in which occurred a rather famous scene 
between Clay and Randolph. Mr. Randolph had used 
language which might have an offensive meaning. Mr. 
Clay rose and with coolness, but in a determined way, 
pointed out the language which might have an un- 
pleasant construction, saying that he would reserve 
what he had to say until an explanation could be made. 
Mr. Randolph rose and explained. Mr. Clay said the 
explanation was not satisfactory, whereupon Mr. Ran- 
dolph disclaimed expressly all intentional offense. It 
is said that it was a very still House until the scene 
was over. This year also, the compensation of members 
was changed and Mr. Clay, for the only time in his life, 
was forced to canvass for his seat. In March, 1817, he 
was again chosen Speaker, after having refused both 



30 INTRODUCTION 

a Cabinet place and the Mission to Russia. In 1818 lie 
made the speech, which has already been described, on 
the constitutional power to make Internal Improve- 
ments. The next year brought with it the speech on 
the Seminole war, and in 1820 he spoke for Protection, 
having been in 1819 again elected Speaker. In 1822 
he was nominated for the Presidency by the Legisla- 
tures of Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri and Ohio. 

In 1823 he was once more Speaker, chosen over 
Barbour, by a vote of 139 to 42. When the returns 
from the Electoral Colleges came in it was found that 
Jackson had 99, Adams 84, Crawford 41, while Mr. 
Clay had but 37, and he was by the language of the 
Constitution not a candidate before the House of 
Representatives. After the choice of John Quincy 
Adams as President, Clay became Secretary of State, 
which office he occupied four years, concluding many 
commercial treaties and doing much good and lasting 
work, having among other things had the foresight or 
statesmanlike instinct to advocate an interoceanic canal. 
Before he became Secretary of State he had been 
Speaker from 1811 to 1825 with the exception of less 
than two years. During one of his speakerships the 
Previous Question was established. While he was 
Secretary of State in 1826 the duel with Randolph 
occurred. At the close of the Adams administration 
he returned home and shortly afterwards went to New 
Orleans and up the Mississippi River and was received 
everywhere with much enthusiasm. In 1831 he was 
elected Senator and on the 12th of December was nomi- 
nated for the Presidency at Baltimore. In 1832 came 
the Nullification Act and the next year the compromise 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 31 

of Mr, Clay was passed and the country saved from 
Nullification, or General Jackson, or perhaps both. 
Afteiivards the Eastern cities received Mr. Clay with 
much honor. In 1833-4 occurred the discussion on the 
removal of the deposits which was a most remarkable 
debate. The refusal of the French Chambers in 1834 
to pay the indemnity agreed upon in the treaty of 1831 
caused President Jackson to propose measures which 
would have led to war. Mr. Clay's report on the 
subject was more reasonable. He was unwilling to 
give up any rights, but thought it wiser to give the 
French Chambers a chance to settle their internal differ- 
ences. This judicious course led to peace and satisfac- 
tory results. 

During the whole period between 1828 and 1836, 
the warfare between Clay and Jackson went on and 
was bequeathed by Jackson to his successor, Van Buren, 
in whose term all the effects of the financial mistakes of 
the twelve years' administration culminated, producing 
such deep and invincible unrest that, in 1840, a great 
wave swept over the country, submerging completely 
Van Buren and his party. There have been more 
marked reversals since, but that for a long time was the 
most notable. A Convention, held at Harrisburg in the 
last month of 1839, passed by the claims of Mr. Clay, 
and from motives of expediency chose General William 
Henry Harrison. Probably any nominee of the Conven- 
tion would have been elected, and it was always a 
source of deep regret to the Whigs that they did not 
nominate their leader, a regret which deepened during 
the dark days when Mr. Tyler was wresting from them 
the fruits of the victory which they had fought for so 



33 INTRODUCTION 

loner and with a courasfe so steadfast. General Har- 
rison lived but a month, and his successor did all the 
things which Van Buren would have done. Mr. Clay 
saw at once that the only salvation of the Whig party 
lay in immediate separation from Tyler. After this was 
accomplished, in 1842, he resigned his seat in the Senate 
and took farewell of public life. 

During that year and the next Mr. Clay visited Ohio, 
Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee, South 
Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, where he was re- 
ceived by great and enthusiastic gatherings of the people. 
In 1844 he was nominated for the Presidency by the unan- 
imous choice of the Whig party. Everything seemed to 
portend his election, and, as has already been said, only 
himself could have prevented it. Probably the defeat 
of no other man in the history of this country has ever 
caused one-haK the individual sorrow that was caused 
by the defeat of Henry Clay. Henry Clay and men 
like him, by the very qualities which excite the love of 
those who love, excite also the hatred of those who 
hate. Their strong and overmastering personality 
makes followers of those whom they subdue, and bitter 
enemies of those whom they offend. 

For four years more Mr. Clay remained without 
office, having refused in 1847 the Senatorship tendered 
him by his people, but in 1850 returned to the Senate 
to advocate and finally to pass the Compromise of 1850. 

This simple catalogue of events, out of which have 
been left almost entirely those things already com- 
mented upon, shows in skeleton a career which is with- 
out a parallel. From the fii'st moment of Mr. Clay's 
public life he appeared as a leader. He took his place 



BY THOMAS B. REED. 38 

naturally at the front, for he was by nature imperious 
and controlling. Doubtless, some of the very qualities 
which made him a leader prevented his leadership 
from being acknowledged by the gift of the great office 
which in his day passed to Jackson, Van Buren, Har- 
rison and James K. Polk, a list of names of which but 
one can for a moment be compared with his. Doubt- 
less, also, some of those qualities which made him as 
an orator matchless for immediate effect, made him at 
times a dangerous leader. Nevertheless imperious as he 
was and impatient of all control, there were occasions 
when he knew the better part of valor and, sacrificing 
his pride to his country, withdrew from conflicts of his 
own provoking. 

May 1 6, 1896. CZJ^A^-^^a^ /o) .ADe>^^^C^_ 



^*^ I venture to append a list of books, magazine ar- 
ticles, pamphlets, etc., relating to the life of Henry Clay, 
which is as complete perhaps as could be furnished 
without very extended research, and may be of help to 
any one who cares to study the subject further. 



1/9./^ 



84 BIBLIOGRAPHY 



BIBLIOGRAPHY OF HENRY CLAY 

Junius Tracts, No. IV. [By Calvin Colton.] 1825. 

Henry Clay. Speeches, with a Memoir. Portrait. 8°. Carey 
& Son, Philadelphia, 1827. 

-i Biography of Henry Clay, by George D. Prentice, Esq., 
Hartford, Conn., 1831. 

The Beauties of the Hon. Henry Clay, to which is added a 
Biographical and Critical Essay, 16°. New York, 1839. 

Henry Clay's Speeches [edited] by Richard Chambers, 8°. 
Cincinnati, 1842. 

Speeches of Henry Clay. With engravings, 2 vols., 8°. Greeley 
& McElrath, Tribune Building, New York, 1883. 

Henry Clay, Life and Speeches. Edited by Daniel Mallory. 
'2d Edition. 2 vols., 8°. New York, 1843. 

Henry Clay, by Junius (Calvin Colton). New York, 1844. 

The Ashland Text Book, being a compendium of Mr. Clay's 
Speeches on various Public Measures [with songs and anecdotes], 
5th Edition. Boston : Redding & Co., 1844. 

The Clay Code, or Text Book of Eloquence. A collection of 
Axioms, Apoplithegms, Sentiments and remarkable Passages on 
Liberty, Government, Political Morality and National Honor, 
gathered from the public speeches of Henry Clay, by G. Vanden- 
hoS. 16°. New York, 1844. 

The Life and Public Services of Henry Clay, by Epes Sargent, 
New York. 2d Edition. 1844. [There are several editions of 
this life.] 

Eulogy on the Life and Services of Henry Clay, delivered in 
the Hall of the House of Representatives, October 11, 1853, 
(Miss.), by Alexander R. M'Clung, Esq. Jackson, 1852. 

A Funeral Oration on the Character, Life and Public Services 
of Henry Clay. Delivered in Cincinnati Nov. 2, 1852, at the 
request of the Clay Monumental Association of Ohio, by Charles 
Anderson. Cincinnati, 1852. 

Obituary Addresses on the occasion of the death of the Hon. 
Henry Clay, delivered in the Senate and House of Representa- 
tives June 30, 1852, and the funeral sermon of the Rev. C. H. 
Butler, preached in the Senate July 1, 1852. 8°. "Washington, 
1852. 

Eulogy on the Life and Services of Henry Clay, delivered at 



OF HENRY CLAY. 85 

the request of the City Council in Augusta, Georgia, Nov. 4, 1852, 
by Charles J. Jenkins. Augusta, Georgia, 1853. 

Life of Henry Clay, by John Frost. Philadelphia, 1853. 
^ Monument to the Memory of Henry Clay. Cincinnati, 1857. 

Report of the Ceremonies on the Fourth of July, 1857, at 
the Laying of the Corner Stone of a National Monument to be 
erected near Lexington, Kentucky, in memory of Henry Clay, 
together with the Oration delivered on the occasion by the Rev. 
Robert J. Breckinridge, D.D., LL.D. Cincinnati, 1857. 

Memoir of Henry Clay, by Robert C. Winthrop. Cambridge, 
1880. 

Life of Henry Clay, by Carl Schnrz. 2 vols. Boston, 1887. 

**Kremer and Clay" (Kremer's Pamphlet), Washington, D. C. 

Burke, Fox and Pitt compared with Calhoun, Clay and Web- 
flter. H. W. Burnap. Miscellaneous Writings, p. 93. 

Life and Character of Clay, 46 pp. Speeches and Addresses, 
p. 410. H. W. Hilliard. N. Y., 1851. 

Life of Henry Clay, 8 pp. J. B. Longacre and Herring, 
National Portrait Gallery, Vol. 1. 

D. A. Harsha. Most Eminent Orators and Statesmen, pg. 53. 

Sketches of Public Services. Anonymous. New York, 1823. 

Some Reasons Why the Vote of New York ought to be given 
to Henry Clay for President, n. p., 1824. 

To the Legislature of New York (In favor of the election of 
Henry Clay), n. p., 1824. 

History of the Case between Jackson and Clay. Anonymous. 
Baltimore, 1827. 

Humphrey Marshall, Prentice's Biography of Henry Clay 
reviewed. Maysville, 1832. 

Joseph Etter. Sketches of United States Senators, etc. 
Washington, pg. 13, 1839. 

J. F. Flouruoy. Essay on the Services and Character of 
Henry Clay. Athens, Georgia, 1840. 

S. A. Foote. Speech at Millstone. Somerville, 1844. 

National Clay Melodist. Boston, 1844. 

O. D. A. Santangelo. Clay or Polk (?). New York, 1844. 

S. M. Maury in Statesmen of America. 1847. 

Henry Clay and the Administration. A tract for the press. 
Anonymous. Philadelphia, 1850. 

C. E. Lester. Gallery of Illustrious Americans. 1850. 

Funeral Sermon on Clay. S. L. Southard. 1852. 

Funeral Oration on Clay. E. H. Foster. 1852. 
' H. Greeley. Homes of American Statesmen. New York, 
1858. 



36 BIBT.IOGRAPHY 

J. Parton. Famous Americans. 1867. 

The Choice of a Free People : Poem and Song. n. d., n. p. 

Cabinet Eloquence, or the Political House that Clay 
Built, n. d. 

Headlands in the Life of Henry Clay. n. p., n. d. 

Baldwin's Party Leaders, p. 205. 

G. W. Bungay. Off Hand-takings, p. 20. 

Duyckinck's National Portrait Gallery. Vol. 2, p. 144. 

W. Mathews on Oratory. 

C. C. Seymour. Self Made Men. p. 130. 

Calhoun, Webster and Clay. J. Nichol. American Literature, 
p. 114. 

Character of Henry Clay. 0. Dyer's Great Senators, pg. 218» 

Speeches of. United States Literary Gazette, 6 :278. 

(A. H. Everett). North American Keview, 33:351. 

(G. H. Col ton). American Whig Review, 2:639. 

Democratic Review, 7:99. 

(V. W. Kingsley). National Quarterly, 25:52. 

(J. Parton). North American Review, 102:147. 

Clay and Andrew Jackson. Southern Literary Messenger, 
19:521-585. 

Clay and Anti-Masons. Niles's Register, 41:260. 

Clay and Lexington Resolutions. (C. King). American Whig 
Review, 6:551. 

Clay in the Field Again ! Democratic Review, 11:205. 

Clay and Restrictive System. Democratic Review, 12:302. 

First and Second Rate Men. Democratic Review, 15:115. 

Clay and Texas Question. (T. Lewis.) American Whig Review, 
1:75. 

(L. G. Clark.) Harper's Magazine, 5:392. 

As an Orator. (W. A. Larned.) New Englander 2:105 ; 
(E. A. Parker.) Putnam, 3,493. 

At Cincinnati. Niles's Register, 35:43. 

Charge of Coalition. American Annual Register, 2:27 ; Niles's 
Register, 28:21 ; 203:32 ; 315:337 ; 391 ; 33:94 ; 167:223 ; 34:306; 
35:122 ; 36:106 ; 141,153 ; 37,125. 

Death of. Democratic Review, 31:142. 

Dinner to, at Frederick, Maryland, 1829, Niles's Register, 
36:124, at Lexington, 1820, Niles's Register, 18:327 ; 1825, 
Niles's Register, 28:267 ; at Natchez, 1830, Niles's Register, 
38:142 ; at Philadelphia, 1823, Niles's Register, 24:94 ; at Pitts- 
burg, 1827, Niles's Register, 32:298; at Washington, D. C, 
1829, Niles's Register, 36:38 ; at Washington, Pa., 1825, Niles's 
Register, 28:243. 



OF HENEY CLAY. St 

Dufl with John Randolph. Niles's Register, 30:115. 
Journey, 1833. Niles's Register, 45:174. 
Last Seven Years of. (D. F. Bacon.) New Englander, 14:543. 
Life and Character of. (C. M. Butler.) American Church 
Review, 5:377. 

and times of. Dublin Univereity Magazine, 27:325. 

Portrait of. American Whig Review, 1:1, 13:383. 

Analectic Magazine, 15:1. 

Private Concerns of. Niles's Register, 34:295. 
Private Correspondence ©f. Living Age, 48:248. 
Reflections on the Death of. (W. J. Tuck. ) Southern Literary 
Messenger, 18:470. 
Sketch of. With portrait. Eclectic Magazine, 53:253, 
Speech at Cincinnati, Aug. 3, 1830. Niles's Register 39:25. 

at Lewisburg, Pa., 1826. Niles's Register, 31:60. 

at Lexington, 1821. Niles's Register, 20:301; 1827. Niles's 

Register, 32:373 ; 1829. Niles's Register, 36:399. 

On Appointing and Removing Power. Niles's Register, 

48:458. 

on Bank Veto, July 12, 1832. Niles's Register, 42:429. 

on Maine Boundary, 1832. Niles's Register, 42:399, 459. 

on Minister to Buenos Ayres. Niles's Register, 14:121. 

on Public Lands, 1832. Niles's Register, 43:57, 1834. 

Niles's Register, 46:268. 

on Removal of Deposits. Niles's Register, 45:349. 

On Tariff. Jan. 11, 1832. Niles's Register, 41:385 ; Feb. 

2, 1832. Niles's Register, 42:2; Feb. 12, 1832. Niles's 
Register, 43:411. 

Henry Clay, Ashland Home of. Century, 11:163. 

Clay, a Candidate for the Presidency. (M. J. Lamb.) Magazine 
of American History, 12:385. 

Clay, a few words about (G. Bancroft). Century, 8:479. 

Clay Reminiscenes, by his Executor. (J. 0. Harrison.) Cen- 
tury, 11:170. 

Clay, Speeches of. (C. H. Peck.) Magazine of American 
History, 16:58. 

Henry Clay. (C. Bishop.) Chatauquan, 9:344. 

Schurz's Life of Clay. Atlantic Monthly, 60:556 ; Spectator, 
60:1426 ; (W. F. Allen). Nation, 44:536 ; (W. H. Smith). 
Dial, Chicago, 8:55; (D. H. Chamberlain). New Englander, 48:77. 

Clay and the Tariff of 1827. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 
2:490. 

Interviews with Clay, Wm. M. Thackeray and others. (J. W. 
Watson.) North American Review, 147:588. 



38 BIBLIOGRAPHY OF HENRY CLAY. 

Henry Clay as Speaker of the House. (Mary Parker Follett.) 
New England Magazine, N. S., 6:344. 

Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams, were they guilty of 
bargain and intrigue? (E.E.Hoss.) Methodist Review, 53:598. 

Clay and John Randolph of Roanoke, Lippincott, 52:443. 



Life and Times of Henry Clay 

Part One 



I 



THB 

LIFE AND TIMES 

OF 

HENRY CLAY. 



CHAPTER I. 

Mr. Clay's Early History.— His Birth, Parentage, and Family History.— 
Death of his Father. — The Widow's Cares. — Schoolmaster and 
Schoolhouse of the Slashes. — The MUl-Boy of the Slashes. — Second 
Marriage of Henry Clay's Mother. — Kindness of his Father-in-Law. 
— His Entrance on a Commercial Apprenticeship at Richmond. — 
Removal to a Clerkship in a Public OflBce. — First Impressions of 
Fellow-Clerks. — Change of their Opinion. — Henry Attracts the 
Attention of Chancellor Wythe. — Becomes his Amanuensis. — Advan- 
tages of this Position. — His Tastes and Intellectual Improvement. — 
His Fame in the Rhetorical Society. — Purity of his Character. — His 
Popularity. — Removal of his Mother and Family to Kentucky. — 
Letter from his Mother. — Basis of his Character. — His Study of the 
Law. — Admission to Practice, — Removal to Kentucky. 

The MAN" who leaves his impress on a great nation, and imparts 
character to the age in which he lives, not only merits the regard 
of contemporaries, but will be a study for future generations. 
That Henry Clay occupies this position in the social state of 
mankind, by a consideration of the past, and in the prospects of 
the future, will scarcely be questioned. His name, character, 
and history are identified with the history of his country ; and 
the student who makes himself acquainted with his life, private, 
professional, and public, will not be ignorant of the standing and 
career of the United States of North America as one of the 
family of nations. 

Henry Clay was born April 12, 1777, in Hanover County, 
Virginia, in a neighborhood commonly called the Slashes — a term 
indicating a district of country that abounds in low, swampy 
grounds. His father, the Rev. John Clay, also a native of Vir- 
ginia, and his mother, Elizabeth Hudson, the younger of two 

Vol. I.— 3 



4:0 EARLY HI3T0EY 

daughters, and only children of George Hudson, of Hanover 
County, had, by this marriage, eight children, three daughters 
and five sons, of whom Henry was the seventh, bearing the name 
of the second son, who had died. The daughters died in early 
womanhood, two after marriage. George, the eldest child, lived 
to maniiood, and died in Virginia. John, the sixth, removed to 
Now Orleans, and died on the Mississippi. The Eev. Porter 
Clay, the youngest of the family, was living at Jacksonville, 
Illinois, in 1844. 

The paternal ancestors of Henry Clay were English. Branches 
of the family are still in the mother country, of which Sir 
William Clay, bart., and member of the British House of Com- 
mons, is supposed to be one. The branch from which Henry Clay 
descended removed to America some time after the establishment 
of the colony of Virginia, and settled on the south side of 
James River. The descendants of the original Virginia stock, 
numerous and widely dispersed, many of which still reside in 
Virginia and Kentucky, have branched so extensively that their 
common origin is scarcely recognized among themselves. 

The Hudson family, on the maternal side of Mr. Clay's ancestry, 
also came from England, about the beginning of the eighteenth 
century, and settled in Hanover County, Virginia, where they 
remained till the above named alliance with the Clay family was 
formed. 

Tradition alleges that the Rev. John Clay, the father of Henry, 
was a man of great vigor of character, of exemplary virtue and 
manners, and of a nice and high sense of the decorums and pro- 
prieties of the social relations — not unlike the son, who has made 
the world familiar with the name of Clay. It is also in evidence 
that the mother of Henry Clay was adorned with eminent female 
virtues, and that she continued to interest herself in the fortunes 
of Henry to the last of her good old age. The father died in 
1781, bequeathing to his widow little else than an estate of seven 
children, Henry being then four years old. Obliged by her 
straitened circumstances to make the most of the ability of her 
children to help her, Mrs. Clay did not, however, neglect to send 
them to school. Henry's tuition for the term of about three 
years was committed to the charge of one Peter Deacon, an 
Englishman, who came to America under a cloud, receiving oc- 
casional remittances from home, while he was employed for 
several years as the schoolmaster of the " Slashes," in which 
capacity he did himself credit, except that he would have done 



OF HENRY CLAY. 41 

( 

better, if teetotalism had begun in his days and comprehended 
himself. His schoolhouse was made of a crib of logs, with no 
floor but the earth, the entrance, serving for door, window, and 
air, being always open. Under these rather inauspicious advan- 
tages Henry Clay was put forward by Peter Deacon in reading, 
writing, and arithmetic; in the latter, to use Mr. Clay's own 
words, " as far as practice." Mr. Clay's reminiscences of Peter 
Deacon do the master much honor, though he says Peter once, 
in a fit of anger, gave him a magisterial blow, the mark of which 
he carried a long time. 

''The Mill Boy of the Slashes," which has kindled so much 
sentiment in the bosoms of the American people, the mimicry of 
which constituted a part of every political pageant of the Whig 
party in the presidential campaign of 1844, and which will still be 
poetic when the generation which first felt its power shall have 
passed away — which, indeed, will never cease to be so while 
poetry is natural to man — had its foundation in the filial and 
fraternal duty of Henry Clay, who, after he was big enough, was 
seen, whenever the meal-barrel was low, going to and fro on the 
road between his mother's house and Mrs. Darricott's mill on the 
Pamunkey Kiver, mounted on a bag that was thrown across a 
pony that was guided by a rope bridle; and thus he became 
familiarly known, by the people living on the line of his travel, 
as "The Mill-Boy of the Slashes." 

Mrs. Clay, mother of Henry, was married a second time to 
Captain Henry Watkins, a man not unworthy of her, who seems 
to have taken a fatherly interest in the family. He was partial 
to Henry, and doubtless perceived that he was a boy of uncom- 
mon promise. In 1791, when Henry was fourteen years of age, 
he was taken into Mr. Kichard Denny's store at Kichmond, Va., 
for the usual functions of boys behind the counter. It does not 
appear that his education at this time extended further than his 
graduation at the log schoolhouse under respectable Peter 
Deacon. It may be presumed, however, from what subsequently 
appears of the boy's character, that he made the best of his op- 
portunities while Peter was teaching his young ideas how to 
shoot. But his stepfather was not satisfied with Henry's place in 
Mr. Denny's store, judging him, very likely, to be worthy of a 
higher destiny than that of a tradesman. It is remarkable by 
what slight causes and apparently trivial agencies a man's course 
of life is determined. Henry Clay would no doubt have made a 
good merchant, and a respectable citizen of Richmond, or any 



42 



EAELT HI6T0ET 



other town. But Captain Watkins had an intimate friend. 
Colonel Thomas Tinsley, member of the Virginia House of Bur- 
gesses, whose brother, Peter Tinsley, Esq., was clerk of the 
High Court of Chancery of Virginia, at Richmond. A desk 
clerkship in the office of this court was considered a very desira- 
ble place for a youth. Nothing was more natural, or more easy, 
than for Captain Watkins to make interest with his friend. 
Colonel Tinsley that he might apply to his brother to take Henry 
into his office. Peter Tinsley replied that there was no opening 
for the lad. ''Never mind," said the colonel, "you must take 
him;" and so he did. 

The account given by Roland Thomas, the senior clerk in this 
office, of Henry's first entrance among them, is interesting. The 
first impression of the other clerks was that they were to have a 
fine butt for ridicule, and that no little fun was in store for 
them. The boy's face was not over-handsome, whatever might 
lie under the surface ; nor had his manners yet been trans- 
formed into the urbanities of Richmond, though he had been in 
Mr. Denny's store about a year. His mother had dressed him up 
in a new suit of "Figginy" (Virginia) cloth, cotton and silk 
mixed, complexion of pepper and salt, with clean linen well 
starched, and the tail of his coat standing out from his legs at an 
angle of forty-five degrees, like that of a dragoon. The clerks 
looked askance at each other, and were not a little amused at the 
apparently awkward chap who had been thrust in upon them. 
Thus accoutred, and thus observed, the willing, ambitious, and 
somewhat proud boy was first put to the desk of copying. It 
was not long, however, before these laughers at first appear- 
ances came in contact with the mind of this newcomer. He had a 
tongue, and could reply. Luckily for them they had not proceeded 
to any rudeness, nor given occasion of offense, before their first im- 
pressions were supplanted by sentiments of respect. Whatever they 
said to him he was always ready for, and they soon found that he 
was more than a match for any one of them. Superior intellect 
easily acquires its position in any society, whether of boys, youth, 
or men. Though the youngest clerk, he was not long in gaining 
the highest place in the regard of his fellows. Besides Henry's 
assiduous attention to his duties in the office, Mr. Thomas, after- 
ward clerk of Henry County, Kentucky, has been accustomed to 
speak of his habits out of the office, when in command of his 
own time, from which it appears that, while the other clerks 
habitually went out in pursuit of amusement at night, Henry 



OF HENKY CLAY. 43^ 

kept company with his books ; that, when they came home, they 
found him reading, and that they left him reading when they 
went to bed. This habit, certified to by Mr. Thomas during his 
life, is a material fact in solving the problem of Mr. Clay's sub- 
sequent character and history. The boy of fifteen, and the youth 
of eighteen, may easily be seen in imagination, as was the fact, 
at that table, with his book and candle, night after night, the 
year out and the year in, unseduced and incapable of being 
seduced by his fellows to the theater or to the billiard room, or 
to other haunts of dissipation. His fellowship was of another 
kind, pure, elevated, instructive, hallowed. He communed with 
the recorded wisdom of ages — of all mankind. 

The agency of Captain Watkins, through his friend Colonel 
Tinsley, in obtaining a place for Henry in Peter Tinsley's office, 
trivial as it might at first and in itself alone appear, was not 
more fortunate for the boy than the habitual calls of the venera- 
ble Chancellor Wythe, whose occasions led him frequently to 
Mr. Tinsley 's rooms, where young Henry attracted his attention 
and induced the chancellor to inquire about him. As Henry was 
in some degree a supernumerary clerk, Mr. Tinsley was easily 
persuaded to loan a portion of his time to the chancellor, who 
solicited his services as an amanuensis in recording his decisions, 
and in other functions of a private secretary. A connection 
thus accidentally formed continued four years, Henry being 
nominally in the office of the clerk of the High Court of Chan- 
cery, but chiefly employed in the office of the chancellor. It 
proved to be mutually agreeable and reciprocally beneficial. The 
chancellor's hand was so affected with a trembling that he could 
not do his own writing. One of the fruits of this connection 
between Chancellor Wythe and Henry Clay will be found in a 
folio volume in the library of the Supreme Court of the United 
States, at Washington, published at Richmond, Va. It evinces 
the habit of Chancellor Wythe in tracing law to the most remote 
sources of antiquity, and some of the notes are extracted from 
the Roman authorities, in the Latin tongue. As the joint pro- 
duction of these two individuals it cannot but be regarded with 
interest ; and it is not less profound than curious. The chan- 
cellor presented this copy to Mr. Jefferson, whose library was 
purchased by Congress, which lodged the work in this place. 

Henry Clay found a father in the chancellor, and the chan- 
cellor a youthful scribe and an apt scholar in Henry Clay. It 
was in this connection that Henry Clay's mind received its high 



44 EAKLY HISTOEY 

destination. The chancellor's society and guidance were to him 
at the same time a school of the classics, of helles-lettres, of law, 
of history, and of every useful department of learning to which 
the taste and ambition of his young friend were inclined ; and 
the habitual connection between them was as that of father and 
son, of master and pupil. The stages which led to this relation 
have been observed, but the relation itself was the platform of 
Henry Clay's fortunes. It introduced him to a new sphere of 
thought and improvement. The chancellor not only became at- 
tached to him, but, perceiving his uncommon capacities prompted 
him to aspire to the legal profession, gave him the use of his 
library, and superintended his reading. For a youth of such 
slender attainments the tasks of this untried position, in which 
his ambition prompted him to desire approbation, were some- 
what formidable. A good clerk could easily perform the func- 
tions of an amanuensis ; but technical law phrases, in languages 
to him unknown, were not easy for a boy to manage who had 
never seen such words before. But the chancellor knew his little 
man, had not chosen him for his high attainments, but for his 
high promise, patiently bore the inconveniences of his imperfect 
qualifications, and soon began to realize his expectations in the 
rapid advances of his secretary in the accomplishments of a 
scholar. 

It has commonly been supposed that Mr. Clay's education was 
not only deficient, but unfortunate. He himself speaks of his 
" neglected education, improved by his own irregular exertions, 
without the benefit of systematic instruction.^' The facts here 
stated are undoubtedly true ; but the supposed defects naturally 
and usually resulting from imperfect culture are not necessarily 
implied. On the contrary, it may be true that the very irregu- 
larities of Mr. Clay's early education were, in his case, fortunate. 
For such a self-relying mind, impelled by the necessity of his 
condition and circumstances, the promptings of his taste, the 
stimulus of his aspirations, and the guidance he so fortunately 
met with, were probably better than the best schools of ** system- 
atic instruction." Genius does not so much require tuition as 
scope and opportunity. Put it in possession of one element of 
science, and all affinities cluster around it by attraction. It 
catches knowledge as it flies, builds up accretions of thought on 
every simple idea that comes within its reach, makes one a parent 
of a thousand others, and runs in quest of all other relations till 
ascertained. 



OF HENKY CLAT. 46 

The advantages which Henry Clay enjoyed under the peda- 
gogue of the ** Slashes" was certainly not very great ; nor was his 
year in the store of Mr. Denny very improving. But the moment 
he entered the office of the clerk of the High Court of Chancery 
of Virginia he began to find his own element ; and from the 
hour when Chancellor Wythe took him by the hand his fortune 
was decided, and he was made for life. He required nothing but 
chance, opportunity, means, books, and the right books ; and no 
man could have made a better guide than he into whose hands 
he so happily fell. In the choice of an amanuensis the chancellor 
found a companion, though a stripling. He beheld in this 
youth the genius of an aspiring, all-grasping mind — a mind 
which he could not lead, himself before, but only guide and 
prompt, himself behind. He had only to name a book to his 
pupil, and the next time he saw him he would find him not only 
possessed of its contents, but profoundly versed in them, and 
extending his thoughts far beyond his instructors. The youth 
did not invoke the keepers of knowledge to let him into their 
secrets, but he marched straight into their wide domains, as to 
the possession of his native rights. If anyone would know how 
and where Henry Clay laid the foundation of his greatness and 
fame, he is answered in the facts that he was for years the pupil 
and companion of Chancellor Wythe, with all the advantages of 
his own aptitudes for improvement, and that the chancellor, 
discovering the high promise of his protege, was not less ambi- 
tious to fit him for his destiny than he himself was to attain 
to it. Possibly Henry Clay might have done better under 
the " systematic instruction " of a university ; but that is not 
certain. There may be reasons for supposing that the school he 
enjoyed was the best possible for his disposition and character, 
and for the destination of his future life. 

It is even possible that without this course of training he 
would have lived and died unknown to fame. Who ever dis- 
covered Mr. Clay's defects of education? The only man who 
ever dared to taunt him on that account was the Hon. John 
Randolph, on the floor of Congress, to which Mr. Clay replied : 
** The gentleman from Virginia was pleased to say that in one 
point, at least, he coincided with me, in an humble estimate of 
my grammatical and philological acquisitions. I know my 
deficiencies. I was born to no proud patrimonial estate. I 
inherited only infancy, ignorance, and indigence. I feel my 
defects. But, so far as my situation in early life is concerned, I 



46 EAELY HISTOEr 

may, without presumption, say it was more my misfortune than 
my fault. But, however, I regret my want of ability to furnish 
the gentleman with a better specimen of powers of verbal 
criticism, I will venture to say, it is not greater than the dis- 
appointment of this committee as to the strength of his argu- 
ment." It is easy to conceive that the pure and lofty ambition 
of a modest but self-relying mind, placed in such circumstances 
as Henry Clay under Chancellor Wythe, should far outstrip the 
ordinary attainments of the students of universities, while it 
escapes the contaminations and other impediments which too 
often mar the character and prove fatal to the prospects of youth 
enjoying such advantages. The society of the venerable chan- 
cellor, on such a mind as Henry Clay's, at that period of his life, 
must have been not less hallowing and conservative in its 
influence on the morals of his pupil than inspiring to his best 
feelings. The benefits of the private tuition of such a master on 
such a scholar might, and probably did, far transcend the most 
select advantages that could have been provided by an ample 
fortune. 

It is apparent, from all that has transpired, directly and in- 
directly, in relation to this period of Mr. Clay's life, that, in 
consequence of his good conduct, and of his high intellectual 
promise, he became a privileged youth soon after he entered 
Mr. Tinsley's office, enjoying the favor of those whose kindness 
was most important to him; and it also appears that he became 
and continued a general favorite in the best society during his 
residence at Richmond. Mr. Tinsley yielded at once to the 
request of Chancellor "Wythe for the services of his clerk, and 
continued to grant them for the space of four years, with 
indefinite extension as to amount, without disturbing the original 
connection ; and at the end of that period, at the instance of the 
chancellor, Henry was released altogether from his obligations to 
Mr. Tinsley, that he might be entered as a regular student of 
law in the office of Attorney-General Brooke, with a view to the 
license by the court. It is not to be supposed, however, that his 
intimacy with Chancellor Wythe was suspended by this new 
arrangement, which was brought about by the chancellor's 
parental care. Ties originating in such circumstances, and 
strengthened by such intercourse, are not easily dissolved. At 
no subsequent period of life has Mr. Clay had any other feelings 
toward the chancellor than those of a son toward a father ; and 
once, in Congress, having occasion to refer to his authority in a 



OF HENEY CLAY. 47 

matter of fact, a parenthesis involuntarily fell in touchingly 
expressive of his filial regard. 

There is one item of Mr. Clay's history at Eichmond of a very 
interesting and practical nature, and especially worthy of notice, 
as constituting one of his primary impulses to that elevated 
career through which he has passed, with so much splendor, as 
an American orator. Ever prone to high aims and lofty pur- 
suits, not less in childhood and youth than in riper years, his 
example and habitual occupations had been the means of excit- 
ing a spirit of mental improvement among his associates ; and 
chiefly through his influence, as is understood, a rhetorical soci- 
ety was formed, composed of young gentlemen of Richmond, for 
purposes of recitation and debate. Among the names of the 
members were Edward Burrell, Littleton W. Tazewell, Walter 
Jones, John 0. Herbert, Bennett Taylor, Philip N. Nicholas, 
Edmund W. Root, Thomas B. Robinson, and others, most of 
whom have since risen to eminence, and occupied distinguished 
stations. The existence and reputation of this society consti- 
tuted an era in the history of the city of Richmond, and Henry 
Clay was its animating spirit, and the star that gave it luster. 
Much and various talent was there developed ; but it will easily 
be believed, by those who have witnessed the ascendancy* of 
Henry Clay in the councils of the nation, that he was not less 
prominent in this, first theater that was opened for the develop- 
ment and display of his powers. His example, his success, and 
the enchantments of his eloquence infused a spirit of young 
ambition among all the members, and attracted the attention of 
the whole city. It is natural to suppose that the distinction he 
acquired in the recitations and debates of this society was gener- 
ally regarded as the herald of his futiire fame. It was there he 
first began to feel and know his own powers. He was leader 
there, as he ever has been in all other places and stations. The 
exquisite pleasure a youth must feel occupying such a position, 
and the dawning hopes clustering and sparkling on his prospects, 
can be conceived only by those young minds that have found 
themselves in similar circumstances. 

It will have been seen that all the conditions of Henry Clay's 
early life were eminently favorable to the purity of his character : 
cradled in the lap of an exemplary clergyman's family ; though 
left fatherless at the age of five years, still watched over by the 
tender cares of a mother of strong character and great discre- 
tion ; spending his childhood in the unsophisticated condition of 



^g EARLY HISTOEY 

rural life, and in the discharge of filial duties toward an affec- 
tionate parent ; earning the fame of *' the Mill-Boy of the Slashes " 
by the universal award of all who observed his little travels ; at 
fourteen established behind the counter at Richmond ; at fifteen 
transformed to the office of the High Court of Chancery ; and 
from that time most intimately associated with the purest minds 
and the best society. It will also have been observed that his 
tastes and aspirations were not less favorable to the conservation 
of the simplicity and purity of his character. No tongue ever 
sullied his name while a resident of Richmond. The boy who 
always had a book in hand while other boys played, the youth 
who was delving after knowledge while other youths were dissi- 
pating time in ill-chosen pleasures, could not easily be spoken 
against. But all this while Henry Clay, by his occupations and 
good behavior, and by the manifestation of his inclinations, was 
ingratiating himself in the favor of superior minds, and of per- 
sons of high standing. Though he left Richmond while yet a 
minor, his character and reputation had introduced him to the 
notice and acquaintance of Edmund Pendleton, Spencer Roane, 
Bushrod Washington, John Marshall, Wickam, Call, Copeland, 
and other distinguished men of Virginia, who deemed themselves 
honored then, as ever since, by the relation. Gentlemen of this 
class, who were much his seniors, and the members of the rhe- 
torical. society, who were his equals, constituted a nucleus of that 
extended acquaintance and elevated society which grew upon 
him, and by which he was honored in after life. Henry Clay did 
not leave Richmond for the great theater of the West with a 
dubious reputation. Eyes and hearts followed him that knew 
what to expect ; and they were not disappointed. 

In 1793 Mr. Clay's mother, with his stepfather. Captain 
Watkins, removed from Virginia to Woodford County, Kentucky, 
thirteen miles from Lexington, taking all her family except 
George and Henry. By Captain Watkins she had seven children, 
in all fifteen, thus answering to Napoleon's definition of a great 
woman, given in answer to a question from the celebrated 
Madame de Stael, who, fishing for a compliment, asked the 
emperor, " Sire, who is the greatest woman in France ? " '' She," 
replied the emperor, " who presents her lord with the greatest 
number of children." 

Mrs. Watkins died in 1827, soon after the date of the follow- 
ing letter, addressed to her son Henry, when Secretary of State, 



OF HENRY CLAY. 49 

under the presidency of John Qiiincy Adams, which was the 
last intercourse between them : 

" Woodford, Ky., September 13, 1827. 

''My Dear Son: Your kind favor of the 14th of August 
came to hand a few days ago. Rest assured, my son, I feel glad 
that you have got ag^in to the bosom of your family, and found 
them all well. I have been a great deal worse than I was when 
I had the pleasure of seeing you last. I can make out to walk 
across the room, with the help of a staff or some one's arm. To- 
day I feel better, having had a good night's rest. My cough is 
not so bad as it was. Mr. Watkins still enjoys his usual health, 
and joins in love to Lucretia [Mrs. Clay], and to the rest of the 
family. Pray write me when convenient. That God may bless 
you, my son, is the sincere prayer of your mother, 

''Elizabeth Watkins. 

"Mr. Henry Clay," 

The interest of this letter consists in the fact that it came 
from the mother of so great a statesman, written while bending 
over the grave under the weight of four-score years, and evincing, 
as it does, the habitual correspondence and enduring affection 
subsisting between them to the last hour of life. She had lived 
within a few miles of her son Henry's residence for the last 
thirty years, occasionally enjoying his society, and had seen him 
rise to the greatest distinction. Mr. Clay has always spoken of 
her as a model of maternal character and female excellence, and 
it is said he never met his constituents in Woodford County 
since her death without some allusion to her, which deeply af- 
fected both him and his audience. It is difficult to say which is 
most complimented, the mother or the son, in the following im- 
promptu sentiment, offered at a Fourth-of-July dinner, 1843, at 
Campbell Court House, Virginia, by Mr. Robert Hughes : " Henry 
Clay — he and I were born close to the Slashes of old Hanover. 
He worked barefooted, and so did I ; he went to mill, and so did 
I ; he was good to his mamma, and so was I. I know him like 
a book, and love him like a brother." The manner of this rem- 
iniscence of childhood, from a plain old country gentleman, will 
be duly appreciated when the occasion, the object, and the sub- 
ject are considered. It is a link that unites affections more than 
fifty years asunder in the dates of their existence. It is natural 
to feel that she must have been a good mother that was loved 
and so dutifully served by such a boy, and that neither could 
have been wanting in rare virtues that should be so remembered, 
after the lapse of half a century, by one who had been separated 



50 EAKLY HI8T0EY 

from them not less by space than time. The spectacle of that 
boy, working barefooted for his mother and her orphan children, 
anticipating the duties of senior members of the family, and 
keeping his eye on the meal-barrel to see that it fails not, 
touches all hearts ; and when, in riper years, he is seen toiling 
through a like career for his country, the common mother of a 
whole people, one is not surprised, though he may be filled with 
admiration ; for the two spheres are kindred to each other. In 
serving his country he only obeys the instincts and fulfills the 
high destiny of his filial piety. 

After a year's study of the law with Attorney-General Brooke, 
who had been Governor of the State, Mr. Clay was admitted to 
practice in 1797 by the Virginia Court of Appeals. That high 
finish of intellectual character, and those rich treasures of prac- 
tical information, for which Mr. Clay has always been dis- 
tinguished, had their foundation, no doubt, in that course of 
culture and discipline, and in those severe studies and patient re- 
searches, into which he was put by Chancellor Wythe, which 
were followed up under Attorney-General Brooke. The rich 
fruits, however, were indebted to the soil as well as to the hand 
that trained them. A mind intent on knowledge, and loving 
knowledge, not only for its own sake, but for its uses, needs but 
an index, the key, and the opportunity. It is true that the 
limits of Mr. Clay's education were somewhat circumscribed as to 
time ; but the aids he enjoyed were of the highest order, the re- 
sources abundant, and he was enticed to effort and stimulated to 
application not less by the seductive kindness of those who took 
an interest in him than by the strong impulses of his own 
disposition. Time is a deceptive measure of acquirements in 
knowledge. It is facility, motive, talent, and help — the charm of 
the occupation, and the delights of circumstances. In the case 
of Henry Clay the pupil was a genius, and the master a Mentor. 
It is rare that young men enter upon professional life with such 
rich and varied information, and with so fixed a habit of correct 
observation — Mr. Clay's own deprecatory allusions, here and 
there, to the disadvantage and inadequacy of his early education 
to the contrary notwithstanding. Though it is natural to re- 
spect such modest pretensions, it is not incumbent on the public 
to take the unpretending character of superior virtue as the 
measure of its claims. 

It is still remembered by those who knew Henry Clay at Rich- 
mond that he became a universal favorite among his superiors 



OF henhy clay. 51 

for his respectful deportment and inquiring mind ; among 
equals, because they loved and were proud of him; among 
children, because of his benevolent attentions ; and in general 
society for the purity of his character, and his excellent and 
fascinating manners. He left behind him a name to be envied, 
and the highest expectations of his future eminence. He re- 
moved to Lexington, Kentucky, in November, 1797, to establish 
himself in the profession of the law, being then not quite twenty- 
one years of age. 

His pecuniary circumstances at that time, as might be sup- 
posed from his previous history, were anything but comfortable. 
He was penniless. The following brief and touching review of 
his early history was given by himself in a speech at Lexington, 
June 6, 1842, at an entertainment in honor of him by his old 
friends and neighbors on ,' the occasion of his retirement from 
public life: *'In looking back upon my origin and progress 
through life I have great reason to be thankful. My father died 
in 1781, leaving me an infant of too tender years to retain my 
recollection of his smiles or endearments. My surviving parent 
removed to this State in 1792, leaving me, a boy of fifteen years 
of age, in the office of the High Court of Chancery, in the city of 
Richmond, without guardian, without pecuniary means of sup- 
port, to steer my course as I might or could. A neglected educa- 
tion was improved by my own irregular exertions without the bene- 
fit of systematic instruction. I studied law principally in the office 
of a lamented friend, the late Governor Brooke, then Attorney- 
General of Virginia, and also under the auspices of the venerable 
and lamented Chancellor Wythe, for whom I had acted as 
amanuensis. I obtained a license to practice the profession from 
the judges of the Court of Appeals of Virginia, without the favor 
or countenance of the great or opulent, without the means of 
paying my weekly board, and in the midst of a bar uncommonly 
distinguished by eminent members. I remember how comfort- 
able I thought I should be if I could make one hundred pounds, 
Virginia money, per year, and with what delight I received the 
first fifteen shillings fee. My hopes were more than realized. I 
immediately rushed into a successful and lucrative practice." 

" Some," says the bard of Avon, " are born great, some achieve 
greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them." The 
first certainly was not the lot of Henry Clay. Neither have his 
opponents been very eager to thrust greatness upon him, how- 



52 EA.BLY HISTORY OF HENEY CLAY. 

ever they may have contributed to that end. All the distinction 
ho has acquired was achieved — achieved by his own lofty aims 
and by his single arm. Men are disposed to honor him who, by 
his own inherent vigor and high aspirations, has successfully 
encountered obstacles that would dispirit ordinary minds, and 
who has baffled, in an honorable career, the adverse winds of 
unhopeful birth and fortunes. In the blood and on the graves 
of the founders of the American republic, themselves martyrs to 
freedom, was laid a platform for such endeavors. On this their 
descendants, though wanting the adventitious aids of a family 
escutcheon and entailed estates, may build high hopes, and earn 
an imperishable fame. 

Born and cradled in the agonies of the American Revolution, 
Henry Clay seems to have been destined by Providence to 
sympathize with its great principles of freedom, and to be the 
leading champion of human rights for the age in which he has 
lived. It is natural and not unphilosophical to suppose, more 
especially as it coincides with their reputed character, that the 
feelings of his parents, in view of British despotism over the 
colonies at that period of strife and blood, were imparted to the 
temperament of a son who has ever shown himself so susceptible 
of hate to tyrants and so prone to the love of liberty. 



ME. clay's domestic histoey. 53 



CHAPTEK II. 

Ml". Clay's Domestic Relations. — His Marriage. — His Children. — His 
Domestic Afflictions. — His Domestic Character. — His Character as a 
Master, Neighbor, Citizen, and Man of Feeling. — Ashland and its 
HosiDitalities. — Mr. Clay's Estate and Pecuniary Condition. 

In April, 1799, about a year and a half after Mr. Clay removed 
to Kentucky, he married Lucretia Hart, daughter of Colonel 
Thomas Hart, a gentleman of high standing in Lexington, and 
famed for his enterprise, public spirit, and hospitality. Another 
of Colonel Hart's daughters was married to James Brown, Esq., 
at that time in the practice of law at Lexington, who afterward 
removed to New Orleans, acquired a large fortune by his pro- 
fession, was elected to the Senate of the United States, afterward 
sent as minister to France by Mr. Monroe, and continued under 
Mr. J. Q. Adams. 

;Mrs. Clay was born in 1781 at Hagerstown, Maryland, being 
four years younger than her husband. They have had eleven 
children, six daughters and five sons, and in 1845 had fifteen 
grandchildren. Their first child, a daughter, born in 1800, 
and their ninth, also a daughter, born in 1816, died in infancy. 
Two other daughters, Lucretia Hart, born in 1809, and Eliza 
Hart, born in 1813, died at the interesting age of fourteen, 
both heavy domestic afflictions. The first of these died at 
Ashland, when both parents were at home, and followed her to 
the grave. She had been a feeble child, but much beloved, and 
was more tenderly regarded on account of her frailty. But the 
circumstances of Eliza's death were peculiarly distressing. She 
had been a blushing flower, of amiable and buoyant temper, 
captivating in her ways, and was cherished with much fond 
hope. With every prospect of life and happiness, she left Ash- 
land with her parents in the spring of 1825, when Mr. Clay was 
proceeding with his family to his post at Washington as 
Secretary of State under Mr. Adams. Eliza was taken sick at 
Cincinnati. After a day or two, however, she was pronounced 



54 MB. CLAY S DOMESTIC 

ablo to proceed ; but at Lebanon they were arrested by new 
and alarming symptoms. Mr. Clay was obliged to leave them 
beliind and proceed to Washington, with the news of Eliza's 
sudden death following after him. This painful intelligence 
reached him in nine days. " Woes love a train." The next day 
after this shock the post from the South announced the death of 
another much loved daughter, Susan Hart, then Mrs. Duralde, 
of New Orleans, at the age of twenty. Ann Brown Clay, born in 
1807, who married Mr. James Erwine, of New Orleans, is 
represented to have been more like her father than any of the 
children, in the development of her intellectual, moral, and 
social qualities. All agree that she was a lady of rare accom- 
plishments and brilliancy, a model of female excellence as a 
daughter, sister, wife, mother, and friend, admired and loved, 
adorning society not less than the domestic circle. Her husband 
had purchased an estate adjoining Ashland as a summer retreat 
for his family, establishing, when it was occupied, a daily round 
of intercourse with her father and his family, till death, in 1835, 
just ten years after the former bereavements, suddenly dissolved 
the tide so strongly uniting parent and child, husband and wife, 
and a circle of endeared connections. She expired in the 
presence of her family, without notice or alarm, or any sign of 
the approach of death. Her father was at Washington. Senator 
Porter, of Louisiana, an intimate friend, was with him when he 
broke the seal of the letter conveying this intelligence. Mr. 
Clay fainted. No event of his life has ever affected him so 
deeply, nor has time been able to heal the wound. Mr. Clay 
kept his room many days after the receipt of this intelligence, 
and when urgently called out by the demands of public duty, 
the Senate, aware of the cause of his absence, manifested deep 
sympathy, when he arose and opened his speech with the follow- 
ing sentence : " Although I feel myself borne down by the 
severest affliction with which Providence has ever been pleased 
to visit me, I have thought that my private griefs ought not 
loiiger to prevent me from attempting, ill as I feel qualified, to dis- 
charge my public duties. " Some time after this event he had occa- 
sion, while pleading a cause in court at Frankfort, Kentucky, 
incidentally to use the expression, '' the vicissitudes of human 
liic',''in allusion to domestic afflictions, when he instantly stopped, 
overpowered with emotion, and sat down to give vent to his feelings. 
The court, jury, and all present were utterly unable to account 
for it, till, being composed, and rising to apologize, he was com- 



HISTORY AND CHARACTER. 55 

pelled to disclose the cause. But the apology was worse in its 
effect than the expression above noticed, and drew along with it 
ihe s}4mpathy of the court and the audience. It was some time 
before he could proceed. He once had daughters. Now he had 
none. One blooming flower, after another, had been blighted, 
and last of all the one most cherished. 

Theodore Wythe Clay, the eldest son, born in 1802, and 
named after Chancellor Wythe — the reason of which will be ob- 
vious to those who may have read the previous chapter — in con- 
sequence of an accidental injury, manifested symptoms of insanity 
in early manhood, and has been for many years the tenant of an 
insane retreat, without hope of recovery. Thomas Hart Clay, 
the second son, born in 1803, preferring the walks of business, 
has been chiefly occupied in the manufacture of hemp, is mar- 
ried, and has a family. Henry Clay, jr., born in 1811, graduated 
with high honors at West Point academy, afterward studied law, 
married, travelled a while in Europe, and is practising law at 
Louisville, Kentucky. James B. Clay, born in 1817, also married, 
is practising law at Lexington, as a partner with his father. John 
M. Clay, the youngest of the family, born in 1821, has also been 
educated fbr the legal profession. 

Mr. Clay, in all his domestic relations, has sustained, through 
life, an exemplary and spotless reputation, as a husband, father, 
and master. During his long public career, himself the observed 
of all observers, few, away from Lexington and the neighborhood, 
have ever heard anything of his family, simply because everything 
there was as it should be. It has been a quiet history, because it 
has been without fault, and without ostentation. The virtues of 
Mrs. Clay, as a faithful wife, an affectionate mother, and a kind 
mistress, have not been altogether unknown. At the head of a 
great household, her cares, in the absence of her husband, on pub- 
lic duty, so frequent, and often long protracted, have necessarily 
been habitually extended to interests out of doors, as well as to the 
customary domain of woman ; and no lady was ever better quali- 
fied for the peculiar position she has so long occupied. Her dairy, 
garden, the pleasure grounds of Ashland, all on a large scale, and 
her green house, were always supervised by her ; and the opera- 
tions of a farm of between five and six hundred acres, were not 
less constantly somewhat under her care. The feeding and cloth- 
ing of all the men and women on the farm and in the house, oeing 

Vol. I.— 3 



56 MR. clay's character 

some fifty or sixty in all, also required her attention, together with 
caring for the sick. Not a gallon of milk, nor a pound of butter, 
nor any of the garden vegetables, went to market, without her per- 
sonal supervision ; and the extent of these duties may be partly 
imagined from the fact, that the Phcenix hotel, in Lexington, is 
supplied with thirty gallons of milk per day from Ashland in the 
summer, and twenty in winter. Mrs. Clay is the first up in the 
morning, and the last to bed at night. When General Bertrand 
was a guest at Ashland, he was much astonished at the extent and 
variety of duties discharged by Mrs. Clay, and at the activity and 
system with which they were accomplished. The servants, in 
doors and out, male and female, cared for in health and in sick- 
ness, in infancy and in old age, well housed, well clad, well fed, 
exempt from the anxieties of life, and always treated with indul- 
gence, would never have known they were in a state of bondage, 
if they had not been told. Aaron, an old body servant of Mr. 
Clay, having been emancipated, would frequently return to Ash- 
land for the supply of his wants, and has been known to complain, 
on these occasions, that he was not so well clothed as the rest 
of the servants ! Charles, Aaron's son, who succeeded his father 
as body servant, has also been emancipated, but prefers staying at 
Ashland, to perform the same duties, on wages. When Charles 
went to Canada with Mr. Clay, great efforts were made to get him 
away from his master, till Charles, to put an end to these good 
counsels, told his advisers, that he would not leave Mr. Clay for all 
Canada. When Mr. Clay himself has been favored with the ad- 
vice of these benevolent persons, while travelling in the free states, 
with his friend Charles, as he usually calls him, he has sometimes 
replied: " There is Charles. You may have him, if you can get 
him." The mother of Charles, who had nursed all Mr. Clay's 
children, was previously emancipated. Mr. Clay's position and 
views on the subject of slavery, claim a more extended notice, 
than would be suitable here, and are therefore reserved for another 
place. 

In respect to Mr, Clay's character as a neighbor and a citi- 
zen, they can best speak among whom he has had his domicil 
for nearly half a century. It is certainly remarkable, that in these 
particulars his political opponents have never been able to say 
aught against him. It is in these relations that men's faults are 
first seen. The nearer men approach to Ashland, the brighter 



AS A NEIGHBOR AND CITIZEN. 57 

does the character of its illustrious proprietor shine. It is in Ken- 
tucky that people know how to honor him ; it is in Fayette coun- 
ty that they regard him as a patriarch of pure fame ; it is in 
Lexington that men never dare to offer him offence ; it is within 
sight of Ashland that all uncover in his presence, and youth and 
children look up to him with veneration and love. He captivated 
the pubHc mind, when he first came among them, by the qualities 
of his heart, by his manners, and by the fascinations of his elo- 
quence, and has held it under an unbroken charm, by the contin- 
ued display of those virtues and powers which first installed him 
in their affections. Old men and young, matrons and maidens, 
girls and boys, all feel the power of his character and name. They 
know him, though he can not know them, and it is only accident 
that occasionally develops the extent of their regard. Some few 
days after the result of the presidential election of 1844 was known, 
Mr. Clay met a woman on horseback, as he was walking in the 
public road near Ashland, who stopped to salute him, but imme- 
diately burst into tears. " Madam," inquired Mr. Clay, " pray, 
what is the matter?" — " Sir," said she, in broken accents, " you 
do not know me, but my father, once your neighbor, always taught 
me to revere you. I have lost my father, my husband, and my 
children, and passed through other painful trials ; but all of them 
together have not given me so much sorrow as the late disappoint- 
ment of your friends." 

In all political contests in which Mr. Clay was personally before 
the people, he never failed to receive a decided and overwhelming 
majority, in Lexington, in Fayette county, in his own congressional 
district, and in the state ; and the nearer home, the greater the 
majority. It was never so great, when he was a candidate, as in 
the presidential election of 1844. This reciprocal regard is well 
illustrated in the following passage from his valedictory to the sen- 
ate of the United States, delivered March 31, 1842 : — 

" Everywhere, throughout the extent of this great continent, I 
have cordial, warm-hearted, and devoted friends, who have known 
me, and justly appreciated my motives. To them, if language 
were susceptible of fully expressing my acknowledgments, I would 
now offer them, as all the return I can now make for their genu- 
ine, disinterested, and persevering fidelity, and devoted attachment. 
But, if I fail in suitable language to express my gratitude to them, 
for all the kindness they have shown me, what shall I say, what 
CAN I say, at all commensurate with those feelings of gratitude 
which I owe to the state whose humble representative and servac 



58 MR. clay's character 

I have been in this chamber ? [Here Mr. Clay's feelings appeared 
to overpower him, and he proceeded with deep sensibility and dif- 
ficult utterance.] I emigrated from the state of Virginia to the 
state of Kentucky, now nearly forty-five years ago. I went as an 
orphan, who had not yet attained the age of majority, who had 
never recognised a father's smile, nor felt his caresses — poor, pen- 
niless, without the favor of the great, with an imperfect and inad- 
equate education, limited to the ordinary business and common 
pursuits of life. But scarce had I set my foot upon her generous 
soil, when I was seized and embraced with parental fondness, ca- 
ressed as though I had been a favorite child, and patronised with 
liberal and unbounded munificence. From that period, the high- 
est honors of the state have been freely bestowed upon me ; and 
afterward, in the darkest hour of calumny and detraction, when I 
seemed to be forsaken by all the rest of the world, she threw her 
broad and impenetrable shield around me, and, bearing me up aloft 
in her courageous arms, repelled the poisoned shafts that were 
aimed at my destruction, and vindicated my good name from every 
false and unfounded aspersion. I return with indescribable pleas- 
ure, to linger a while longer, and mingle with the warm-heafrted 
and whole-souled people of that state ; and, when the last scene 
shall for ever close upon me, I hope that my earthly remains will 
be laid under her green sod with those of her gallant and patriotic 
sons." 

The long-standing relation of Mr. Clay to the people of Ken- 
tucky, as here described, was so well known; the position which 
he occupied at the moment, was so peculiar ; his own feelings and 
those of his audience, were so completely masters of the occasion, 
that no one could witness the retirement of such a patriarch from 
public connexions of so responsible, high, and momentous a char- 
acter, which had run through two generations of a people who had 
been served by him, in such an uninterrupted course, and with 
such fidelity, ability, and success, without feeling that a great and 
strong tie, such as is rarely formed in the social state, was being 
dissolved ; and the recognition of his obligations to those who had 
sustained him in all his career, when in truth the obligations were 
on the other side, was not the least brilliant, or least touching fea- 
ture of the spectacle. The commonwealth of Kentucky stood 
forth on this occasion personified in the senate-chamber of the 
Union, and was seen enacting the chivalrous part ascribed to her 
by her adopted and favorite son — " bearing bim aloft in her cour- 
ageous arms." It is not uncommon in history, to find the most 
faithful and the purest men deserted by the people whom they had 



AS A NEIGHBOR AND CITIZEN. 59 

served. But, to the honor of Kentucky be it said, she never de- 
serted Henry Clay. 

On the 5th of December, 1844, the electoral college of Ken- 
tucky, after having the day previous cast their suffrages for Henry 
Clay as president of the United States, accompanied by the gov- 
ernor of the state, paid their respects in a body to Mr. Clay, at 
Ashland, without notice, except by a message sent up in the morn- 
ing. Numerous citizens from Lexington formed in the procession, 
which was escorted from the city by a company of artillery, sudden- 
ly mustered as volunteers for the occasion. Mr. Clay met them, un- 
covered, on the steps of his mansion, as they, being also uncovered, 
drew up to exchange salutations. It was not to congratulate him, 
nor to mingle rejoicings in the triumphs of right, or in the happy 
prospects of the country ; but to show the steadfastness of thdr 
regard, and their respect for his character. They wept — how could 
they help it? — as the Hon. J. R. Underwood, their organ, gave 
utterance to their sentiments, the conclusion of which was as fol- 
lows : — 

" In the shades of Ashland, may you long continue to enjoy 
peace, quiet, and the possession of those great faculties which ren- 
dered you the admiration of your friends, and the benefactor of your 
country. And when, at last, death shall demand its victim, while 
Kentucky will contain your ashes, rest assured, that old and faith- 
ful friends, those who, knowing you longest, loved you best, will 
cherish your memory, and defend your reputation." 

That it should have been a struggle, even for Mr. Clay, to re- 
ply to this address, may well be imagined. With a manly spirit, 
however, though not without faltering, he enacted his part. It 
was chiefly a neighborhood and commonwealth feeling which im- 
parted to this occasion its touching peculiarity, though it could not 
be viewed altogether apart from its more extended relations. 

As a MAN OF FEELING, many are the incidents and occasions, 
in the history of Mr. Clay's life, which illustrate this part of his 
character. His profound and lasting sensibilities, touching his do- 
mestic afflictions, already noticed, are evidences to this point. His 
daughters were his idols, and when violently separated from them 
by the rude hand of death, his affections were only strengthened, 
to suffer without consolation. Who ever heard Mr. Clay speak 
of his family, or of any of its members, but with respect and ten- 
derness ? — or of a servant, but with kindness ? — or of a friend, 



60' MR. clay's character 

but with feelings of which that friend would be proud ? Who 
ever heard a servant of his speak ill of him, or complaiu ? or a 
neighbor say, he had found him unkind ? 

General La Fayette had become sufficiently acquainted with 
Mr. Clay, to know how much he valued a sympathizing friend, 
whether in the joys or sorrows of life, and when he heard through 
Mr. Brown, the American minister at Paris, of the death of Mrs. 
Duralde, whom he had known, he addressed Mr. Clay a letter of 
condolence, of which the following is an extract : — 

" Although no direct information from you, my friend, has con- 
firmed the fatal report communicated to me for the first time by 
Mr. Brown and your sister, 1 but too well know I have again to 
sympathize with you in a most heavy calamity. I have also to 
mourn for myself It was impossible to have formed an acquaint- 
ance with the most valuable daughter you have lost, to have been 
favored with her friendly welcome and affectionate attention, with- 
out feeling a deep and lively personal regret. I condole most ten- 
derly and mournfully with you, with Mrs. Clay, and the whole 
family, so cruelly visited of late, and want words to express what 
I feel on the lamentable occasion. I have no heart to talk to you 
on other matters. You can not write to a more sympathizingr 
friend." ^ ^ 

Notes of this kind, written in the unreserved confidence of pri- 
vate friendship, often bring out features of character on both sides, 
which do not appear so striking in the more public transactions of 
life. The following extract from a letter to Mr. Clay, written in 
London, November 27, 1844, on the result of the presidential 
election, will be seen to be from one who was connected with the 
American mission at Ghent. It was in the capacity of a secre- 
tary : — 

" My heart is sad. I am weeping, as we both did, when com- 
paratively young men, on the 24th December, 1S14, the day we 
signed the peace of Ghent. You threw your arms around my 
neck, in bidding me adieu, seeing how sad I was, and exclaimed, 
' What is the matter with you, my friend ? You seem to be un- 
happy.' I loved you, my excellent and kind-hearted friend, for 
the kindness and tenderness of your conduct. You embraced me ; 
you wept like a child. You thought of your country. Your heart 
was full of the pride, and pleasure, and comfort of having achieved 
peace." 

It is by such accidents, and in such forms, that the heart of man 
is laid open to the eye. None who know the strength of Mr. 



AS A MAN OF FEELING. 61 

Clay's mind, will pretend that these bursts of feeling, which have 
not been rare in the progress of his life, on occasions naturally- 
touching, are anything other than the result of the action of corre- 
sponding moral qualities of a vigorous and sensitive kind. A feeling 
heart, nicely susceptible to the sympathies of a common humanity, 
will alone account for the facts. Such a character is quickly and easily 
affected, in view of any of the diversified forms of human enjoyment or 
suffering, of prosperity or adversity, as well as by its own participation 
therein. Mr. Clay has ever shown himself capable of a lively sym- 
pathy for persons in distress, in all the varieties of misfortune, mental, 
physical, social, or political. This character is displayed, accord- 
ing to the nature of the occasion. Many have been the instan- 
ces, when Mr. Clay has volunteered his services, in the legal pro- 
fession, in behalf of persons held in bondage, who in his opinion 
were entitled to their freedom, and obtained it for them ; and of 
others, whose actual freedom was endangered by illegal claims, to 
rescue them from impending slavery. It was always a principle 
with Mr. Clay, that no person, whom he could serve, should want 
a professional advocate, because of poverty. The cases of needy 
widows and orphans, requu-ing such aid, he would seek, not satis- 
fied with helping those whose misfortunes happened to come to 
his knowledge ; and he would never take a fee from a family con- 
nexion. He once found a poor Irishman, one Russell, who had 
been terribly whipped (lynched) by the Kentucky " Regulators," 
so called, being gangs of men in the backwoods, endeavoring to 
keep beyond the reach of law, regulating their own affairs, in pri- 
mary assemblies, without a written code. Russell had the misfor- 
tune to live in the vicinity of one of these haunts, and gave some 
offence, in his efforts to check their lawlessness. Their modes of 
revenge compelled him to abandon his place, and sacrifice his prop- 
erty. Mr. Clay, after hearing Russell's story, and learning that 
his wife and family were witnesses, at the hazard of his own safety, 
not to say of his life, volunteered his services, obtained exemplary 
damages for Russell, and broke up the gang. 

In Mr. Clay's various positions as a public man, his sympathy 
has never failed to appear on occasions naturally exciting it. Th 
distress of the country has always been his own. Take, for 
example, his two short speeches in the senate, of March 7 and 
14, 1834, on presenting some of those petitions, which poured 
in from all parts of the country, on account of the distress occa- 
sioned by the removal of the public deposites : — 



62 MR. clay's character 

**No one," said Mr. Clay, "who has not a htart of steel, can 
listen to thein, without feeling the deepest sympathy for the priva- 
tions and sufferings unnecessarily brought upon the laboring classes 
.... It is with subdued feelings of the profoundest humility and 
mortification, that I am compelled to say, that, constituted as Con- 
gress now is, no relief will be afforded by it, unless its members 
shall be enlightened and instructed by the people themselves. . . . 
In twenty-four hours, the executive branch could adopt a measure, 
which would afford an efficacious and substantial remedy." 

Mr. Clay then addressed the vice-president (Mr. Van Buren), 
in the chair, in terms of supplication : " To you, then, sir, in no 
unfriendly spirit, but with feelings softened and subdued by the 
deep distress, which pervades every class of our countrymen, I 
make the appeal. By your official and personal relations with the 
president [General Jackson], you maintain with him an inter- 
course, which I neither enjoy, nor covet. Go to him, and tell 
him without exaggeration, but in the language of truth and sin- 
cerity, the actual condition of his bleeding country. Depict to 
him, if you can find language to portray, the heart-rending wretch- 
edness of thousands of the working classes, thrown out of employ- 
ment. Tell him of the tears of helpless widows, of unclad and 
unfed orphans. Entreat him to pause, and not drive this brave, 
generous, and patriotic people to madness and despair." 

The wrongs done to the aboriginal tribes of this continent, 
roused Mr. Clay's sympathies. In his speech on the relations of 
the United States to the Cherokees, February 4, 1835, he said : — 

" I go into this subject with feelings, which no language at my 
command, will enable me adequately to express. I assure the 
senate, and in an especial manner I assure the honorable senators 
from Georgia, that my wish and purpose are any other than to 
excite the slightest possible irritation on the part of any human 
being. Far from it. I am actuated only by feelings of grief, 
feelings of sorrow, and of profound regret, irresistibly called forth 
by the contemplation of the miserable condition to which these 
unfortunate people have been reduced, by acts of legislation pro- 
ceeding from one of the states of this confederacy He 

said, he was applied to by the unfortunate Cherokees, to present 
their case to the senate. And he should have been false and 
faithless to his own heart, and unworthy of human nature, if he 
had declined to be their organ, however inadequate he feared he 
had proved himself to be." 

The state of Georgia had claimed, that the United States were 
bound to extinguish the Indian land titles within her bounds, 
which, so long as the Cherokees refused their consent, conflicted 
with the obligations of treaties between the Indians and the fed' 



AS A MAN OF FEELING. 63 

eral government ; and Georgia, on the alleged delinquency of the 
United States, had extended her jurisdiction over the Cherokee 
country. The object of the resolutions before the senate at this 
time, was to remedy this difficulty, and if possible to shield and 
indemnify the Cherokees against the wrongs they suffered by state 
legislation. 

It is unnecessary to mention, what is known to all the world, 
how Mr. Clay's sympathies have expanded to embrace the op- 
pressed of all nations, or how effectively those feelings have been 
exerted in the eminent and influential positions he has occupied, 
to extend the domain of freedom, in South America, in Greece, 
and elsewhere. The early, zealous, and solitary movement which 
he made in Congress, in behalf of the South American states, 
while struggling for independence, will stand for ever as a monu- 
ment of his active sympathy for suffering and oppressed humanity. 
The gallantry, the chivalric character of his speeches in Congress, 
in favor of those states, has been felt over the wide world. He 
had freely expressed himself on this subject in 1816 and 1817. 
On the 24th of January, 1817, speaking in opposition to the bill 
to enforce neutrality, the object of which was, in deference to the 
Spanish government, to put a stop to the building of armed ves- 
sels in the ports of the United States, to be sold to the South 
American states, and which added two new principles to the law 
of 1794, Mr. Clay said: — 

" From the inmost recesses of my heart, I wish them [the South 
American states] independence. I may be accused of an impru- 
dent utterance of my feelings on this occasion. I care not. When 
the independence, the happiness, the liberty of a whole people is 
at stake, and that people our neighbors, our brethren, occupying a 
portion of the same continent, imitating our example, and partici- 
pating in the same sympathies with ourselves, I will boldly avow 
my feelings, and my wishes in their behalf, even at the hazard of 
such an imputation." 

In his speech of May 10, 1820, he said : " This republic, 
with the exception of the people of South America, constitutes the 
sole depository of civil and religious freedom. And can it be pos- 
sible, that we should remain passive spectators of the struggle of 
those people to break the same chains, which once bound us? 
The opinion of the friends of freedom in Europe, is, that our 
policy has been cold, heartless, and indifferent toward the great- 
est cause, which could possibly engage our affections, and enlist 
our feelings in its behalf." 

In supporting Mr. Webster's resolution to send an agent to 



64 ASHLAND AND 

Greece, in 1824, Mr. Clay said : " Go home, if you can — go 
home, if you dare, and tell your constituents, that you voted it 
down. Meet, if you can, the faces of those who sent you here, 
and tell them, that you shrank from the declaration of your own 
sentiments ; that the spectres of cimeters, and crowns, and cres- 
cents, gleamed before you, and alarmed you ; and that you sup- 
pressed all the noble feelings prompted by religion, by liberty, by 
national independence, and by humanity." 

In private and in public, in all social and political relations, Mr. 
Clay has ever been found preeminently the man of feeling. 
As if charged with a commission from above, it would seem to 
have been his constant aim, his ruling passion, to discharge the 
high duties of philanthropy, by multiplying in the greatest number, 
and extending to the greatest limit, the largest benefactions to the 
human race, his charity beginning at home, but finding no bounds. 
Sentiment has been the pastime of his life, the luxury of his 
existence. 

Ashland, the residence of Mr. Clay, comprising the house, 
gardens, and park, is situated a mile and a half, southeast, from 
the courthouse in Lexington, on the southwest side of the turn- 
pike road, leading to Richmond, but by the extension of the city, 
seems only to lie alongside of it. The whole estate of Ashland 
consists of between five and six hundred acres, of the best land in 
Kentucky — which, for agricultural purposes, is one of the richest 
states in the Union. Ashland proper, was projected for an ele- 
gant country-seat. The house is a spacious brick mansion, with- 
out much pretension in architecture, surrounded by lawns and 
pleasure-grounds, interspersed with walks and groves, planted with 
almost every variety of American shrubbery and forest trees, 
executed under the direction of Mr. and Mrs. Clay. Mr. Clay 
appears to have delighted in gathering around him the plants and 
trees of his own country, there being among them but few exotics. 
As the domicil of the great American statesman, Ashland is one 
of the household words of the American people. Having been 
deeply lodged in their affections, so long as the memory of its pro- 
prietor is cherished, it can not fail to have a place in history. 
Lexington is one of the oldest towns in the state, containing about 
eight thousand inhabitants, situated in the heart of a rich and beau- 
tiful country, itself a beautiful city. Its society is highly cultivated 
and intellectual, doubtless owing some of its celebrity in these 
particulars, to the vicinage of so distinguished a patriot, inspiring 



ITS HOSPITALITIES. 65 

its inhabitants with an admiration and love of himself, and inciting 
them to excellence in all the virtues of American citizens. 

The HOSPITALITIES of Ashland are sufficiently well known to 
the many distinguished strangers, who have visited Lexington since 
the beginning of the nineteenth century. Mr. Politica, Russian 
minister, La Fayette, President Monroe, William Lowndes, 
Martin Van Buren, Daniel Webster, Lord Morpeth, General 
Bertrand, and many others known to fame, have been among the 
guests of Ashland. For twelve years speaker of the house of 
representatives, Mr. Clay was accustomed to entertain at dinner 
once each session of Congress, in a series of parties, all the mem- 
bers of both houses, and the ambassadors of foreign countries. 
While secretary of state, under Mr. Adams, the weekly levees 
were held alternately at the president's and Mr. Clay's. 

Mr. Clay is far from being opulent. His long service in public 
life, during which he has been poorly remunerated, has prevented 
his acquiring wealth, of which he has not been desirous, farther 
than to educate his children, maintain his family, and live like his 
neighbors. His personal habits are not expensive, nor is there the 
least parade, or ostentation, in his dress, in his house, in his furni- 
ture, or in his mode of living ; but entire plainness in everything 
visible. He has been always averse to contracting debts, keeping 
but few servants, and paying as he goes. Never, for a moment, 
has he been involved in any pecuniary difficulty on his own ac- 
count ; but he has been twice in his life seriously embarrassed by 
responsibilities for others. On the first occasion, he quitted public 
life, returned to the practice of his profession, and reheved him- 
self from his obligations. He was a second time, and recently, 
involved, by engagements for one of his sons, who proved unfor- 
tunate in business. On that occasion, he displayed his character- 
istic generosity and disinterestedness. His son made a conveyance 
of all his property, providing for an equal distribution of it among 
all his creditors, of whom his father was the largest, the debt to 
him amounting to as much as the aggregate of the debts to all the 
others. He voluntarily rehnquished his share in the common 
fund, to the other creditors, who were paid in full, while he received 
nothing. Always anxious to acquit himself with honor of every 
obligation, he felt the greatest sensibility under this weight of debt, 
and would no doubt have parted with Ashland, to rid himself of 
it, but for the relief mentioned in the following letter: — 



QQ MR. clay's pecuniary condition. 

" Northern Bank of Kentucky, 
"Lexington, May 21, 1845. 

"Dear Sir: I am in receipt of your letter of the 12th inst. 
Within the last two months, I have received from various sections 
of the United States, letters to my address, containing money, 
which I was requested to apply to the payment of the Hon. H. 
Clay's debts, with no other information, than that it was a contri- 
bution by friends, who owed him a debt of gratitude for services 
he had rendered his country in years past, and that they were 
desirous of rendering his declining years free from pecuniary cares. 
The amount so received amounted to twenty-five thousand seven 
hundred and fifty dollars. This, with the exception of five hun- 
dred dollars used for the same purpose through another channel, 
is the total. It was with some reluctance that Mr. Clay was 
induced to accept this relief; and I am convinced, that the deli- 
cacy observed by the generous donors, had much influence in his 
decision. 

" He is now measurably freed from debt, and his Ashland 
cleared of mortgages. We trust it will continue to be the resi- 
dence of its noble owner, and that Providence will long spare his 
life for his country and friends. 

" I am, dear sir, respectfully yours, 

"Jno. Tilford. 

" C. COLTON, Esq." 

It was reported in the public press, that Mr. Clay asked Mr. 
Tilford, with emotion, " Who did this?" To which Mr. Tilford 
replied : •' Sir, I do not know. It is sufficient to say, that they 
are not your enemies." 

It is evident, from the frugal and exact habits of Mr. Clay, and 
from his unparalleled success in his profession, whenever engaged, 
that, if he had devoted his life to it, instead of the public, he could 
have made himself one of the richest men in the land. 

There is another fact, in the history of his estate, which can not 
but be a subject of regret with all who take an interest in him — 
one, indeed, which he would never mention, as the transaction wa» 
voluntary on his part, though arising from his relations to the pub 
lie. He once owned a tract of land, through which the canal al 
Louisville (Ky.) runs, and which comprehends a part of the city 
Being unproductive at that time, the contingent prospects of him 
self and family, resulting from his public engagements, induced hin 
to exchange it for other property ; and the sacrifice which he made 
in the chances of the future, by that transaction, is estimated at » 
million of dollars ! 



UR. CLAY S MORAL CHARACTEa. gjf 



CHAPTER ni. 

Mr. Clay's Moral Character and Religious Sentiments. — Admiration of his Char- 
acter in Children and Youth. 

Although every man's morals must be brought to a common 
standard, it may nevertheless be true, that those of some men can 
not be estimated by common rules. While one man acts cor- 
rectly in the social relations, because the influences of society 
force him to do so, another does it spontaneously, from the pure 
and elevated character of his own feelings. The latter does not 
follow, but leads ; is not a copyist, but the author of examples. On 
account of his high and independent career, he may possibly ex- 
hibit some deviations that will incur the criticisms of strict casuists. 
Though a shining light, Uke as artificial aids reveal spots on the 
sun, he may not be altogether without them. 

There is a great and comprehensive fact in the history of Mr. 
Clay's moral character, with the power of a controlling principle, 
which would not, perhaps, occur to one of many minds, which 
probably was never understood by himself, because thorough self- 
knowledge is rarely attained, but which needs only to be men- 
tioned to be appreciated : Mr. Clay was always in advance of 
those around him in the character of his moral feelings. He was 
indeed, in the first place, indebted to that original and eternal 
moral system established by the Creator, in alliance with the con- 
science of moral agents, as all men are ; he was, in the next 
place, indebted to the favorable circumstances of his infantile ex- 
istence ; in the third place, he was indebted to the not less favor- 
able social relations, which befell him, at Richmond, in his youth, 
till he launched forth into the loftier and more extended sphere of 
his destiny ; and in the fourth place, he was indebted to that per- 
fect system of morality, generally afloat, in numberless forms, 
emanating from Christianity. But the original moral sense im- 
parted to him by creative energy, was purer than life in its ordi- 
nary forms, stronger than the best common agencies of society 



6^ MR. clay's moral chap.actex 

and always kept ahead of anything common. While a child and 
boy at home, he was better even than his mother expected, and 
she was constantly surprised and delighted by the exuberant fruits 
of his good conduct. He seemed to require neither her guid- 
ance, nor her promptings. In every position he occupied at 
Richmond, till he graduated for the higher responsibilities of life, 
and removed to Kentucky, it was precisely the same. He was 
ahead of all around him, in the tone of his morals, and in the 
correctness of his conduct. It was he that shed light on others, 
not others that shed light on him ; he was their example, not they 
his. He indeed deferred to superiors, in the respectfulness of his 
deportment ; but he was constantly seen starting up, and darting 
forward, in some brilliant development of moral character, alto- 
gether independent and peculiar to himself. In whatever circle 
he moved, in whatever company he appeared, in all his relations, 
when unchecked by the just claims of his seniors, he was the 
reigning star. 

An ascendency and precedence of this kind, budding in infancy, 
blossoming in childhood, conceded in youth, and maintained every- 
where, throughout the period of his early history, was not likely 
to be resigned, or to disapppear in subsequent life ; but, like all 
human talents, which acquire strength by use, and the claims of 
which are universally conceded, when they can no longer be 
rivalled, this character of Mr. Clay rapidly grew into manhood, 
and obtained a standing, from which no social influences were ever 
able to thrust him. Since he entered the great theatre of life, as 
an independent and responsible agent, he has never been found in 
any society or relations, to which it could be said, that he was 
indebted ; but all have acknowledged their indebtedness to him. 
He was always a leader, never a follower. The tone of his mor- 
als was native to him, was cradled by the best care, was invigo- 
rated by the habits of childhood and youth, and was never relaxed. 
To lofty aims and a dignified bearing, such as he ever manifested, 
the ordinary vices of men could not easily attach themselves. 
Nobody ever thought of bringing Henry Clay down ; they only 
thought of rising to his level. Admiration of him was regarded by 
others as a compliment to themselves, and they accorded to him a 
position, which it was easy for him to maintain. Such was his 
industry, and such the rapidity of his career, in acquiring reputa- 
tion, after he entered upon life, that there was not time for him to 
be corrupted by the bad, even if they had desired or attempted to 



AND RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS. (JJ) 

do SO. But his best security was, that nobody ever dared to make 
to him a dishonorable or degrading proposal. 

Mixing, through life, chiefly with men, not professing to be gov- 
erned by religious principle, with whom good manners are made 
the standard or evidence of good morals, Mr. Clay was doubtless 
in some degree influenced, though it is not necessary to suppose, 
that he was vitiated, by such associations. From the character 
ascribed to him, and which is believed to be true, he was never a 
man to imbibe, but rather a man to impart, influence. He may, 
in some instances, have conformed to customs, which he could 
not, upon reflection, approve, as for example, the practice of play- 
ing at cards with money at stake — a well-known fault of gentlemen 
in his sphere of society, and much more practised formerly than 
of later years. But Mr. Clay never visited a gambhng-house in 
his life, and was never seen at a gaming-table, set up for that pur- 
pose. In the early periods of his public career, he played with 
his equals in society for the excitements of the game; but he 
never allowed a pack of cards to be in his own house, and no man 
ever saw one there. That he was once in the habit of yielding to 
this seductive passion, is not more true than that he always con- 
demned the practice, and for many years has for the most part 
abstained from it. Probably no man reprobates it more sincerely. 

It is also known that Mr. Clay has twice in his life been engaged 
in duels, the first with Humphrey Marshall, of Kentucky, and the 
second with John Randolph, of Roanoke. The laws of the code 
of honor, so called, can never be justified, and it is equally a vio- 
lation of the rights of society and of God. That these two things 
are blemishes in Mr. Clay's brilhant career, can not be denied, and 
that he regrets them more than any others can, is doubtless true. 

As regards Mr. Clay's pecuniary transactions, which constitute 
one of the severest tests of morals, there is not probably in the 
country a person more careful to "owe no man anything," or who 
would be more anxious while in that situation. He was never 
embarrassed from this cause, by his own improvidence, or on his 
own account. When he went abroad, in 1814, as commissioner 
at Ghent, he loaned his credit to some friends in Kentucky, and 
returned to find himself deeply involved by the use they had made 
of it. But he afterward resigned the speakership of the house of 
representatives, left Congress for a season, to work oflf this bur- 
den, in the use of his profession as a lawyer, in which he suc- 
ceeded. To some of his friends, who expressed their regret, that 



70 MR. clay's moral character 

he should retire from the pubUc service, he replied, "You can not 
have a better guaranty for the fidelity of a public servant, than that 
he should be independent." It too often happens that public men 
are not independent ; and it is rare, that they retire into private life 
to make themselves so. Too many of them prefer the spoils of 
official station. How can he who has neglected his own affairs, be 
safely intrusted with the affairs of others — of the public? In the 
smallest affairs of trust, Mr. Clay is remarkably punctiUous, and 
as with all such persons, he expects and requires it from all others. 
It would be morally impossible, that he should either forget, or 
neglect a trust, however trivial it might be, whether accepted 
by himself, or imposed without his consent. No client of his 
ever had to complain of a suit neglected, of papers lost, or of a 
settlement in his favor deferred. System, method has always been 
a part of Mr. Clay's morals, and he could write from Washington 
to say, in what parcel, in what pigeon-hole, of what bureau, at 
Ashland, a specific paper might be found. Occasions have de- 
monstrated this fact, which is the reason of its being so stated. 

Mr. Clay has been a second time embarrassed in his pecuniary 
condition, the cause of which, and the relief, are stated in the pre 
ceding chapter. 

Mr. Clay's habitual care to be on the right side, in suits at law, 
i«! an instance of his regard for sound morality. It was rare, that 
he ever engaged on the wrong side. Nor would any devices, or 
tricks, to evade law, escape his rebuke. A man once appealed to 
him, with feeling, saying, that he was embarrassed, and wished to 
secure something to his wife and children, before his failure, think- 
ing it a justifiable act. The manner of Mr. Clay's reply, showed, 
that he regarded it as an immorality. He would engage in no 
such transaction. 

When Mr. Clay was secretary of state, in 1827, and his son 
Henry at West Point academy, he was accidentally advised of 
some improper conduct in one of the cadets. Fearing for his 
son, who, as a member of the same institution, and an intimate of 
this young man, might be injured by such society, and not less 
desirous of benefiting the offender, he wrote him a letter of rebuke, 
which brought forth a reply, of which the following is an extract: 
"It is possible, that when you wrote a letter which I have this mo- 
ment received, you pictured to yourself some of the effects which 
it would leave on my feelings. Whatever idea you may have 
formed of such feelings, it could not have come up, by far, to the 



AND RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS. 71 

reality." His reprover had the satisfaction of observing, that he 
had not discharged his sense of duty in vain. 

The laudable and successful ambition of Henry Clay, jr., while 
a cadet at West Point, is not more evident, than his filial afiection 
and obedience to the counsels of a solicitous parent. The follow- 
ing brief items of a correspondence on one side, are copied as an 
illustration of this part of the morality of the social state, showing 
parental care and filial regard. In a letter to his father, dated 
West Point, Feb. 1, 1829, Henry says. — 

" I am but too well convinced of the truth of your remark, that 
there is not a mistake, whicn a man commits with more ease, than 
that of judging erroneously of the degree of his own merits, and 
that none should be more carefully guarded against. The conclu- 
sion at which I arrived, and was thoughuess enough to mention to 
you, was that of my own unassisted judgment. I agree with you, 
that no man is so contemptible, as he who is ready to follow, and 
to engage in any pursuit, without first consulting his own good 
sense, and prudence." At another time, he says : "In regard to 
my going to Kentucky, I feel forcibly the obligations under which 
I am to you, for your kind wish, that I should spend my vacation 
as agreeably as possible. I know not, whether the transient pleas- 
ure I shall enjoy, will compensate for the inconvenience to which 
you may be put." Again : " I have received your letter of the 
14th inst. By it, all my fears are quieted. Feeling as I now do, 
T can not but beseech you to forgive me for the uneasiness, which 
my but half-suppressed discontent must have caused you." 
These, certainly, are gems in such a relation. 

But that high-toned morality, which made Mr. Clay so scrupu- 
ously nice in all the private relations of life, and which is not less 
exact now than at any former period, has had a broader field for 
its display, and been rendered more illustrious in his character as 
a statesman : first, in his conscientious regard for the rights of the 
people, and the rights of the states, as defined in fundamental law ; 
and next, in his respect for the claims of international law, and for 
the opinion of mankind, based upon that platform. Here are 
suggested three comprehensive rules of morality. With Mr. Clay, 
as a statesman, the existing government, existing institutions, and 
existing laws, rightly defined and interpreted, are authority, and 
the only authority. Whatever rights they secure to the people, 
Mr. Clay has ever considered himself conscientiously, religiously 
bound to maintain. The rights of the states, being another class, 
have also their claims. Mr. Clay, however his own personal feel 

Vol. I.- 



72 Mu. clay's moral character 

ings or private judgment might differ from the rule, would no 
more consider himself entitled to depart from it, in the discharge 
of his public duties, than a Christian priest to violate the gospel. 
In the matter of slavery, for example, the constitution has decided 
on what basis it shall stand, and within what limits. That is the 
rule for Mr. Clay, on this subject, as a pubUc man. In all foreign 
relations, the recognised pubhc law is his only guide. Mr. Clay 
thundered out his denunciations against the alienation of Texas, 
when it was consummated in 1819; but being done, he would not 
acquire it in violation of pubUc law, however desirable it might be 
to have it. Right for the people, right for the states, and right for 
all nations, according to the rules, has ever been Mr. Clay's code 
of morality, as a statesman ; and with him, it has been a principle 
of morality, rather than a question of policy. With him, in such 
matters, the law is the gospel. Morality has entered into Mr. 
Clay's public character, with not less energy, than into his private 
relations. In the former, it has displayed its greatest strength, on 
account of the nature of the subjects, as being more important and 
more momentous. 

Nobody could ever find who had been Mr. Clay's preceptor in 
moral lessons, because he never had one, except the tuition of the 
Deity over the monitor within, aided by the providential circum- 
stances of his birth and education. For a mind so independent 
in its action, marching to the discovery of its own superior pow- 
ers, which was unavoidable, it was fortunate, that Mr. Clay's 
moral perceptions were always pure. 

But there have been displayed in Mr. Clay's career other and 
higher moral qualities, which do not come within the range of these 
lower and more circumscribed views — qualities, which constitute 
the most interesting developments of his chzr^ciev, and which, 
though impulsive in their nature, yet, in his case, have been uni- 
form in their modes of action, and beneficent in their tendencies. 
They are not uncommon in isolated instances, each by itself, and 
usually in a lower degree. It is the assemblage of so many in one 
individual, and the vigor and effectiveness of their action, which 
are remarkable. They are those higher attributes of moral char- 
acter, for which a man acquires the reputation of disinterested, 
'philanthropic i noble, generous, chivalric, patriotic, heroic. 

No matter what human being may be in distress, or what kind 
of misfortune may be his lot, a man endowed with these qualities 



AND RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS. 73 

IS instantly roused by an impulse for his relief, and he will achieve 
it, if it be within the limits of his ability. His eye and his heart 
are upon it, because he is impelled by the powerful action of his 
moral constitution, in view of the case. It would be impossible 
for him to rest, till this desire is gratified. It takes hold of him 
like a passion, and becomes a passion, putting in requisition all the 
means within his reach, and all the powers of which he is pos- 
sessed. He may and doubtless will have rules of action pre- 
scribed to himself, in regard to such cases ; but he can no more 
refrain from acting, than he can violate the laws of his being. 

When such a man's social relations are enlarged, and he is 
called to act for society on an extended scale, with more or less 
of authority, this disposition, in all its energy, invigorated and 
stimulated by exercise, is developed in comprehensive devices, to 
embrace a larger number of the unfortunate, and a wider sphere 
of suffering. If its influences are mediate, and its agencies sec- 
ondary, it is the result of his position, and is as much more effec- 
tive and useful in its operations, as the scale on which he acts is 
larger. As an agent for others, he will, if possible, more than 
satisfy those who have committed trusts to his hands, by his fidel- 
ity, zeal, and success. As an arbitrator between disputants, and 
violent antagonists, all his benevolent energies are called forth in 
the useful functions of a peace-maker. As a commissioner on a 
philanthropic errand, delegated from one party to another, single 
or associated, he engages in his mission with all his soul. As a 
legislator, his ear and heart are open to all addresses, and he looks 
abroad upon the community, to see how much suffering he can 
relieve, and how much good he can do. As a magistrate, his 
great aims are fidelity, justice, mercy. When human life is in his 
hand, as an advocate or public functionary, all his powers are 
directed to its preservation on just principles. As a state or na- 
tional counsellor, in whatever capacity, he is first a patriot, next a 
philanthropist. It is not enough for him to do all possible good 
to his own country, but, after taking care of that, he grasps the 
general interests of humanity. Other states, and other nations, so 
far as he can further their progress in freedom and happiness, are 
sure to realize his effective sympathy. 

But these powerful tendencies of his nature to beneficent acts, 
on the smallest and on the largest scale, are not without regard to 
personal honor when he acts for himself, or to the honor of his 
«lient when he acts for another, or to public honor when he is a 



7i MR. clay's moral character 

public agent. That same powerful impulse, which prompts bira 
to do good, and to do it with energy and effect, on proper occa- 
sions, is intimately associated with a not less powerful sense of 
wrong, and of dishonorable conduct, to keep himself right, and to 
:laim the same treatment from others — to have his country always 
in the right, and to hold all opponents, private or public, always in 
the wrong, if they choose to differ ; and the right he will maintain 
to the death. 

And, it will be observed, that there is always a disinterestedness 
in these rare characters. It is impossible, in the nature of man, 
and of moral being, that self-interest should consist with these great 
qualities, developed in the various forms of nobleness of feeling, 
of generosity, of chivalry, of patriotism, and of heroism, according 
to the nature of the occasion, on which they are respectively called 
forth. A regard to self would be a check, an effectual bar on the 
action and current of such high feelings. A consideration of self 
not only arrests their progress, but is death to them. It dries up 
the fountain. Selfishness and these attributes can not coexist in a 
uniform character. A man may do a great, and apparently, noble 
action, from a selfish motive ; but a selfish man will not boldly 
venture on such acts as a career of life, in all relations, in all cir- 
cumstances, and on all occasions. A man, ambitious of fame, may 
make to himself a notable history as a military chieftain, or in any 
other single pursuit, from motives chiefly selfish ; and for that rea- 
son, he will never be caught making a sacrifice of his own chances, 
for the rights, and interests of others, or of the public, or for pri- 
vate honor. In some, if not in many of the diversified relations 
and stages of his career, he will be found defective, so that his 
reputation will be tarnished, if not for ever disgraced, and his fair 
fame obscured, if not obliterated. 

But the character now under consideration, the man who was 
made and who lives for others, not for himself, who is constitu- 
tionally and invariably actuated by a regard for the good of others 
and of the public ; who is habitually under the control of these 
higher and nobler impulses, after the strictest scrutiny into the 
nicest points of his social history, will come out pure, untarnished 
The more he is known, so much the more will the disinterested- 
ness of his conduct be established, and so much the more will his 
honor be illustrated. It will be found, that he has never paused 
in sacrificing his own chances, when honor, or public good required 
it. Scrupulous in his principles and in his conduct, he has acted 



AND RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS. 75 

under the impulses of a great and generous mind. If he deserves 
less credit, because he was so constituted by nature, he can never 
be fairly accused of the vices which are opposed to these eminent 
virtues. 

It can not be denied, that an impression has gone widely abroad, 
that Henry Clay is a character of this description. Thousands, 
and tens of thousands of witnesses, and close observers of his life 
and conduct, believe it, certify to it. A history of forty years, is 
a severe test of a public man's character. It is at least remarkable, 
that, after all the siftings through which Mr. Clay has passed, in 
view of the multiplied social and public relations he has held, and 
notwithstanding all the attempts of his enemies to defame him, this 
impression of his disinterested, noble, generous, chivalric, patriotic, 
heroic character, has spread wider, grown stronger, and obtained a 
more profound, and firmer hold on the mind, not only of the 
American people, but of the civilized world. 

In regard to Mr. Clay's religious sentiments, it is a sub- 
ject of some interest, and not unworthy of notice. The position 
he has occupied, in relation to the religious world, is perhaps as 
well defined in his own remarks, made in the senate of the United 
States, in 1832, when he moved a joint resolution, to request the 
president to appoint and recommend a national fast, on account 
of that terrible scourge, the Asiatic cholera, which had extended 
its ravages to the American continent, and filled the public mind 
with consternation and dismay. Very unexpectedly this motion 
was opposed in the senate, and afterward in the house of repre- 
sentatives by the speaker, James K. Polk, and others, though it 
passed ; but the president, General Jackson, having refused his 
assent, the proposal failed. In consequence of this opposition, 
among othor things, Mr. Clay said : — 

" I am a member of no religious sect, and I am not a professor 
of religion. I regret that I am not. I wish that I was, and I trust 
that I shall be. I have, and always have had, a profound regard 
for Christianity, the religion of my fathers, and for its rites, its 
usages, and its observances. Among these, that which is proposed 
in this resolution, has always commanded the respect of the good 
and the devout ; and I hope it will obtain the concurrence of the 
senate." 

No one would be able to perceive, that Mr. Clay's mind had 
been tainted with the poisonous ingredients, in relation to Chris- 
tianity, with which the atmosphere of society has been charged for 



76 MR. CLAY S MORAL CHARACTER 

the last half century, or more. It is remarkable, to say the least 
considering the circumstances in which he has oeen placed, and 
the associations with which his various public functions have 
brought him in contact, for so large a portion of his life, that he 
should have passed through such an ordeal, and come out, with 
such simplicity and purity of mind on the subject of religion. In 
the use of that practical good sense, for which he was always 
remarkable, knowing well, that he was too much occupied in other 
things, to debate such piofound matters, and believing that a hasty 
judgment upon them would be very unwise, and might be fatal, he 
seems never to have drawn in question the claims of Christianity, 
or the verities of its Divine disclosures, and has apparently been 
accustomed to entertain it as a great and suitable Fact. 

Mr. Clay's belief in Divine Providence often appears, in his 
public speeches, and in conversation. In the opening of a speech, 
in the house of representatives, in March, 1824, on the great 
interests of the country, as involved in the American system, ap- 
parently impressed with the weighty and religious responsibili- 
ties then devolving on that body, he said : — 

" I would invoke the aid of the Most High. I would anxiously 
and fervently implore his Divine assistance, that he would be gra- 
ciously pleased to shower on my country his richest blessings ; that 
he would sustain, on this interesting occasion, the humble indi- 
vidual that stands before him, and lend him the power, moral and 
physical, to perform the solemn duties which now belong to his 
public station." 

In Mr. Clay's speech before the Kentucky Colonization Soci- 
ety, at Frankfort, 1829, speaking of the time required for the 
accomplishment of great and good ends, he said : — 

" Eighteen hundred years have rolled away since the Son of 
God, our Blessed Redeemer, offered himself on Mount Calvary, 
for the salvation of our species ; and more than half of mankind 
still continue to deny his Divine mission, and the truth of his sacred 
word. Throughout the entire existence of Christianity, it has been 
a favorite object of its ardent disciples, and pious professors, to dif- 
fuse its blessings by converting the heathen. This duty is enjoined 
by its own sacred precepts, and prompted by considerations of 
humanity. All Christendom is more or less employed in this ob- 
ject, at this moment, in some part or other of the earth. But it 
must in candor be owned, that hitherto missionary efforts have not 
had a success corresponding in extent with the piety and benevo- 
lence of their aims, or with the amount of means which have been 
applied. Some new and more efficacious mode of accomplishing 



AND RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS. 77 

the beneficent purpose, must be devised, which, by concentrating 
energies and endeavors, and avoiding loss in their diffuse and un- 
combined appHcation, snail insure the attainment of more cheering 
results." 

Mr. Clay concluded his speech on this occasion, as follows: 
" We have reason to believe, that we have been hitherto favored, 
and shall continue to be blessed, with the smiles of Providence. 
Confiding in his approving judgment, and conscious of the be- 
nevolence and purity of our intentions, we may fearlessly advance 
in our great work. And when we shall, as soon we must, be 
translated from this into another form of existence, is the hope 
presumptuous, that we shall behold the common Father of whites 
and blacks, the great Ruler of the universe, cast his all-seeing eye 
upon civilized and regenerated Africa, its cultivated fields, its 
coasts studded with numerous cities, adorned with towering tem- 
ples, dedicated to the pure religion of his redeeming Son?" 

In a speech, in the senate, 1832, when describing the social 
and moral condition of factory-girls, in American establishments, 
he alludes, with apparent religious and devout satisfaction, to their 
Christian privileges and character, thus : — 

♦' ' Six days shalt thou labor, and do all that thou hast to do ; 
but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God.' Ac- 
cordingly we behold them [the factory-girls] on that sacred day, 
assembling in his temples, and in devotional attitudes, and with 
pious countenances, offering their prayers to Heaven for all its 
blessings ; of which, it is not the least, that a system of policy 
has been adopted by their country, which admits of their obtain- 
ing a comfortable subsistence." 

Mr. Clay describes what he had witnessed. Hence the senti- 
ment and vividness of the picture. 

In his speech in behalf of the Cherokees, 1835, he says : " If 
they [Congress] were to fail to do this [justice], and if there was, 
as reason and revelation declared there was, a tribunal of eternal 
justice, to which all human power was amenable, how could they, 
if they refused to perform their duties to this injured and oppres- 
sed, though civilized race, expect to escape the visitations of that 
Divine vengeance, which none could avoid, who had committed 
wrong, or done injustice to others ?" Here is morality as well 
as religion. 

" I have waited," said Mr. Clay, in his valedictory to the sen- 
ate, 1842, ** in perfect and undoubting confidence, for the ulti- 
mate triumph of justice and truth, and in the entire persuasion, 



78 MR. clay's moral character 

that time would, in the end, settle all things as they should be, 
and that whatever wrong or injustice I might experience at the 
hands of man. He, to whom all hearts are open and fully known, 
would, in the end, by the inscrutable dispensations of his provi- 
dence, rectify all error, redress all wrong, and cause ample justice 
to be done." 

In the opening of Mr. Clay's speech at Lexington, June 6, 
1842, on his retirement to private life, he said : " I feel that it is 
our first duty to express our obligations to a kind and bountiful 
Providence, for the copious and genial showers with which he has 
blessed our land — a refreshment of which it stood much in need. 
For one, T offer to him my humble and dutiful thanks." 

It has been the habit of Mr. Clay, through life, on proper oc- 
casions, in private and in public, to make a religious and reveren- 
tial recognition of Divine Providence, and to speak in the most 
respectful manner of Christianity, its rites, and its institutions. 
He has also been an habitual attendant on the public observances 
of religion. On a Sunday evening, some time after the result of 
the presidential election of 1844 was known, while sitting at his 
own fireside, with two friends, the dark prospects of the country 
being a topic of conversation, he said, pointing with his finger to 
the Bible, which lay on the table — the only book there, showing 
the use that had been made of it: " Gentlemen, I do not know 
anything but that book, that can reconcile us to such events." 

" Ashland, March 7, 1845. 

"Dear Sir : I have received your obliging letter, informing 
me, that, by the contribution of two ladies of Baltimore, of the 
requisite sum for the purpose, I have been made a member for 
life, of the Baltimore Sabbath Association. As you do not in- 
form me of the names of the ladies, I must request you to be my 
organ to communicate to them my respectful acknowledgments for 
this proof of their valued regard and esteem, and to assure them, 
that I share with them in sentiments of profound reverence for 
the sabbath, as a religious institution, and that I fervently hope, 
that all laudable endeavors to inculcate the proper observance of 
it, may be crowned with success. 

" I have also to thank you for a copy of the pamphlet, con- 
taining the proceedings of the association, which you forwarded 
to me. 

*' I am, with high respect, your friend and obedient servant, 

" H. Clay. 

"Charles W. RiDGELT, Esq." 



AND RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS. 79 

" Ashland, March 7, 1845. 

" Dear Sir : I have received your favor, transmitting a testi- 
monial of my being made a member for life of the American 
Home Missionary Society, in virtue of a contribution made for that 
object by the ladies of the Durand Society of New Haven. 

" I request you to communicate to them my grateful acknowl- 
edgments for this distinguished proof of their highly-appreciated 
esteem and regard, and to assure them that I share with them 
a profound sense of the surpassing importance of the Christian 
religion, and beheving, as I sincerely do, in its truth, I hope and 
trust that their laudaJble endeavors to promote and advance its 
cause may be crowned with signal success. 

*• I am obliged to you for your account of the operations of 
the society. And from their great extent I should suppose that 
the results of the labors of the society would fully correspond 
with the pious and religious motives which prompted its establish- 
ment. 

" I am, with great respect, your friend and obedient servant, 

" H. Clay. 

'' Charles Hall, Esq." 

Since Mr. Clay's retirement from public life, he appears to be 
more than ever impressed with the inestimable value of religion, 
is often occupied with researches and studies connected with it, 
regularly attends divine service, and probably will soon become a 
communicant in the church. 

The impression which the character of Mr. Clay has made 
upon the children and youth of the land, is one of interest and 
instruction. Doubtless it may be partly explained by his repu- 
tation, which, such as it is, always takes a strong hold of young 
imaginations. 

A reverend gentleman, in Kentucky, became enthusiastically 
attached to Mr. Clay, from impressions received in his youth. 
In a letter to him, in 1828, speaking as one personally unknown 
to him, he says : — 

" When I was pursuing my education in Lexington, as a 
student and a boy, I was much pleased with your oration at 
the laying of the corner-stone of the hospital. Once, on Pop- 
lar Row, on the pavement, I met you. There were none else 
on the street, and you spoke to me so politely and friendly, 
though a little thing, it made no small impression. The next 
time I saw you, was when I was at college. You passed through 
Princeton (N. J.), sitting by the driver, on the outside, and spoke 
to Mr. , who was with me. The way you spoke to 



80 ADMIRED 

him, as an acquaintance, impressed me, that, in no ordinary de- 
gree, you were a man of friendly feeling and urbanity. I have 
named my firstborn son, Henry Clay, first, as a mark of 
friendship and affection for you ; and next, that your character 
might stimulate him to worthy deeds. I am in the habit of pray- 
ing for you, in secret and public. You are consecrated to your 
country. Bear with me, for I love you." 

The following letter has an interest of this kind : — 

" , Augiist 11, 1832. 

*' My Dear Sir : The two little gentlemen, who are named 
in this note, applied to me, in the most earnest manner, to introduce 
them to your notice and acquaintance ; and I must say, that it 
gratified me to comply with their request. My heart feels joy, 
when I see little boys (they will soon be men), uncontaminated, 
ardently desiring to know you. Both of them, little fellows, are 
endeared to me, from the consideration of having labored long, 
incessantly, carefully, and S'uccessfully, in the cultivation of the 
minds of their mothers. The elder of these little gentleman, is 

, of , whom I introduced to you at that place, on 

your way to Kentucky, when I saw you last ; and the younger is 

, son of . I pray God Almighty to look 

down, and bless the rising generation, and thus prevent the awful 
political and moral contagion, which has overspread and pervaded 
our once happy country, so that our youth, at least, may escape 
its baneful influence." 

A student at college writes to Mr. Clay, December, 1844, 
thus : — 

" Honored Sir : Excuse the enthusiasm, which prompts a 
young and ardent son of Rhode Island in addressing you, whose 
genius and principles have won his admiration. It is among the 
most pleasant recollections of my childhood, that when, many 
years ago, you passed through my native city, I, too, among the 
thousands who bade you welcome, had the honor of taking by 
the hand, the statesman, whose name had become as household 
words in the land of Roger WiUiams." 

It is singular, that while writing this page, the author should 
have received a letter, of which the following is an extract : — 

*' Strange that a man, whom I have seen but once or twice in my 
life, and that in my boyhood, when he was surrounded by crowds 
of friends, and too much engrossed with them, to notice the chil- 
dren with whom I was then ranked, should now be loved almost 
as a father ! And yet half of the nation may say the same 
thing" 



BY THE YOUNG. 81 

One evening at Maysville, Kentucky, 1842, after Mr. Clay 
nad made his entrance there on a public occasion, some matrons, 
followed by their daughters, were observed to be importuning him. 
Mr. Clay was obliged at last to sit down in a chair, and submit 
to the scissors, till he cried out, " Please leave a little, or I shall 
have to get a wig." The young damsels stood by, each waiting 
her turn for a lock of his hair, while their mothers officiated as 
barbers. 

On another occasion, in 1844, while Mr. Clay was sitting in 
his office, at Lexington, a group of noisy, but lovely little girls, 
rushed in, crying out, and emulating each other for the first salute, 
" How do you do, Mr. Clay ?" all seizing his hands simultaneously. 
Their gentle, captivating violence amounted almost to rudeness. 
Mr. Clay did not know one of them ; but they were not slow to 
tell him whose daughters they were, which they did not doubt 
was a sufficient introduction. " Come and see me, Mr. Clay," 
each one insisted, on retiring, and each seized his hand some 
half-dozen times, all being in controversy, who should have it 
last, as they had been, who should get hold of it first. 

In the last two cases above noticed, the author describes what 
he himself witnessed, and was much interested in observing, on 
account of the moral of the facts. These are only a few exam- 
ples of the feelings of children and youth toward Mr. Clay, which 
might be multiplied to an unlimited extent. There must be a 
foundation for this admiration in young minds. Unknown to 
most of them, his well-earned fame touches their hearts. Nor is 
the effect less on the sterner feelings of manhood, and the more 
gentle affections of female character. 



82 ME. clay's person. 



CHAPTER IV. 

BIr. Clay's Person — Temperament — Manners — Voice — Attribates of Ek)quence.— 

Specimens of his Eloquence. 

Mr. Clay is a tall man, six feet and one inch ; not stout 
but the opposite ; has long arms, and a small hand ; always erect 
in standing, walking, or talking ; in debate, still more erect ; has a 
well-shaped head, and a dauntless profile; an uncommonly large 
mouth, upper lip commanding, nose prominent, spare visage, and 
blue eyes, electrical when kindled ; forehead high, sloping back- 
ward in a curvilinear line, that bespeaks the man ; hair naturally 
light, and slow to put on the frosts of age ; withal, displaying a 
well-formed person, and imposing aspect, with which, it is sup- 
posed, an amateur or connoisseur in human shape and counte- 
nance, would not be likely to find much fault. In regard to phren- 
ological developments, so far as any may have respect for that 
science, so called, the following is a sketch of Mr. Clay, drawn 
by a professor, whether from fact or theory, both being before him, 
it is not deemed important to say : — 

" There is a tall, light-haired, blue-eyed individual, sixty years 
old or more, who occupies a seat in the senate, at the capitol. 
He has not what would be called a handsome face, but one of the 
liveliest, or, if we may so speak, one of the most looking faces 
that ever fronted a head. It is because he has a looking organi- 
zation. You catch not him asleep or moping. He seems to see 
everybody that comes in, or goes out, and besides, to have an eye 
on, and an ear for, whatever honorable senator may occupy the 
field of debate. If his own marked political game is on foot, he 
is then Nimrod, a mighty hunter. He can see just what fissure 
of inconsistency, nook of sophism, or covert of rhetoric, is made 
a hiding-place. At the right moment, he aims a rifle pretty sure 
to hit, if his powder is good ; and his friends say, that he uses 
the best. Grand fun it is, to stand by, and see this keen sports- 
man crack off, and especially to hear him wind ' the mellow, mel- 
low horn,' which his mother gave him a long while ago. To leave 
our hunting-ground metaphor, for the plain beaten way, this indi 



Mft. CLAY 5 TEMPERAMENT 83 

ridual is the veteran statesman from Kentucky. Now, just come 
and look at his head, or seek his portrait, at least. You will see 
how his PERCEPTivES put themselves forth in front, just as if 
they were reaching after their objects, as it were, for a long pull, 
and a strong pull, to fetch them into keeping. Then, in speech, 
with what ease, grace, order, and effect, he can fling forth his 
gatherings. His mind has been developed by the exciting circum- 
stances of active life, rather than by the speculations of quiet 
books. Henry Clay is, therefore, a practical man. He is pre- 
eminently PERCEPTIVE. He knows the whom, the what, the 
where, the when, the which first, and the how many, as well, per- 
haps, as any public man living. A very long political life has put 
him to the test. We do not aver, that he never made mistakes, or 
that he is politically and positively right; we intimate, more- 
over, NOTHING TO THE CONTRARY. We would simply convey, 
that of all the great statesmen of our country, he particularly illus- 
trates the faculties just had under review !" — Uncle Sam^s Letters. 

The TEMPERAMENT of Mr. Clay is sanguineous and mercurial, 
susceptible of quick, and in the presence of powerful causes, of 
high excitement; but it has been so well controlled by his judg- 
ment and moral feelings, that the condescension, affability, and 
great kindness, which have usually characterized his manners, 
have procured for him the most enthusiastic and ardent attach- 
ments among all classes, all ages, and both sexes. In less guarded 
moments, however, the proneness of such a temperament to quick 
action, has sometimes wounded friends and made enemies. But 
he is magnanimous in his concessions, when convinced of a fault. 

In 1816, when he and Mr. John Pope were opposing candi- 
dates for Congress, Mr. Clay took offence at something which had 
been said by one of Mr. Pope's friends, and attacked him in the 
streets of Lexington, creating no inconsiderable disturbance. It 
was generally thought, that Mr. Clay was in the wrong, and after 
sleeping upon it, he himself came to the same opinion. The next 
morning he made the amende honorable to the gentleman whom 
he had attacked ; but it was not so easy to make his peace with 
the people. The next day he was to meet Mr. Pope a few mile 
from the city in public debate, where the people, when assembled, 
evinced much excitement on account of this affair. Mr. Clay 
rose, in presence of the multitude, and in a very feeling, but dig- 
nified manner, acknowledged his fault. The magnanimity of this 
conduct, done with a grace and effect, which none but Mr. Clay 
could throw into it, greatly enhanced his popularity, and he car- 



84 MR. CLAYS TEMPERAMENT. 

ried the district over Mr. Pope triumphantly, as he always did, 
before and after, against every opposing candidate in the state, 
whether feefore the people for the house of representatives, or in 
the legislature for the senate of the United States. 

This constitutional excitability in Mr. Clay, has always been 
with him a severe test of the power of self-government, and it is 
not a little to his credit that he has so generally been able to con- 
trol the strong tendencies of his ardent temper, and hold them 
within the bounds of moderation. He who, like Mr. Clay, thinks 
quick, and comes quick to his conclusions, is in danger of impa- 
tience at the movements of more sluggish minds ; and a public 
man, for ever absorbed, and sometimes vexed, by the cares of 
office, has some apology for disposing of calls on business ab- 
ruptly, or for excusing himself to visiters, who do not appreciate 
the preciousness ot nis time. When, however, it is considered, 
that Mr. Clay's great powers were based on this very tempera- 
ment, which has exposed him to occasional faults, and that, under 
the admirable self-discipUne he has maintained, the public, the 
world, are indebted to these strong impulsions of nature, for the in- 
valuable fruits and results of his lofty ambition and great exertions, 
no one can reasonably regret, that Mr. Clay was just such a man, 
and no other. 

Mr. Clay himself seems to have been aware of this feature of 
his own character. In his valedictory to the senate of the United 
States, in 1842, he said : — 

" That my nature is warm, my temper ardent, my disposition — 
especially in relation to the public service — enthusiastic, I am fully 
ready to own. During a long and arduous career of service, in 
the public councils of my country — especially during the last 
eleven years I have held a seat in the senate — from the same ardor 
and enthusiasm of character, I have no doubt, in the heat of de- 
bate, and in an honest endeavor to maintain my opinions, against 
adverse opinions equally honestly entertained, as to the best course 
to be adopted for the public welfare, I may have often, inadvert- 
ently or unintentionally, in moments of excited debate, made use 
of language that has been offensive, and susceptible of injurious 
interpretation toward my brother senators. If there be any here, 
who retain wounded feelings of injury or dissatisfaction produced 
on such occasions, I beg to assure them, that I now offer the am- 
plest apology for any departure, on my part, from the established 
rules of parliamentary decorum and courtesy. On the other hand, 
I assure the senators, one and all, without exception, and without 
reserve, that I retire from this senate-chamber without carrying 



MR. clay's manners AND VOICE. 85 

With me a single feeling of resentment or dissatisfaction to the 
senate, or to any one of its members." 

There was truth and reason in this, which was uttered in such 
a feeling manner, that there was scarcely a dry eye in the senate. 
When the speech was concluded, Mr. Calhoun walked across the 
senate-chamber, and offered Mr. Clay his hand, which was cor- 
dially taken, and thus ended their hostility. 

In MANNERS, few men, if any, have been more happy, than 
Mr. Clay. Naturally endowed with great self-pos&ession and ease, 
displaying a commanding person, an eloquent countenance, a con- 
descending mien, affability, dignity, deference, general courtesy, 
and having a quick discernment of character, Mr. Clay has been 
not less successful in captivating the plainest people than the more 
cultivated ; in winning the populace, than being the centre of at- 
traction in the drawing-room. The common man, after an acquaint- 
ance, would naturally say, he is kind; the gentleman would say, 
he is easy and without fault ; the lady, he is an example of polite- 
ness ; the opponent in debate, he is fair ; the diplomatist, he is 
accomplished; the client, he is attentive; the friend, he is true and 
faithful ; and youth and children, that have been noticed by him, 
have given evidence, that he is fascinating. He is not less sus- 
ceptible of accommodation in manners to all persons and char- 
acters, than versatile in the capabilities of his intellectual powers — 
a gentleman, by nature, culture, and habit. 

The VOICE of Mr. Clay has been one of great melody, com- 
pass, and power. With a foundation of low bass, deep and 
strong, it has been capable of rising to the sharp falsetto, every 
note in the scale musical and far-reaching. Within this compass, 
lies the power of expressing all human feelings and passions. 
The penetrating character of Mr. Clay's voice, has been consid- 
ered remarkable, its common colloquial notes, being equal in their 
effect, in the same circumstances, to that of the greatest physical 
exertion of most men. Spectators in the galleries of the senate- 
chamber, have often heard his private talk at his desk below, while 
another senator was making a speech. In regard to the modula- 
tions of his voice for oratorical purposes, instructed by nature 
rather than art, and employing his vocal powers chiefly for the 
practical uses of society, of the forum, and of public debate, Mr. 
Clay has always escaped the vices of tune or song. Hence his 



86 ATTEIBT7TE8 OF ME. CLAT's ELOQUENCE. 

elocution has been felt to be natural, and has consequently been 
effective. 

But the ATTEIBUTE8 of Mr. Clay's eloquence extend to a wider 
range than that of voice. His person, tall, erect, commanding ; 
his countenance, as well as his voice, capable of expressing every 
feeling and passion of the human soul, pleasure or pain, satisfac- 
tion or discontent, hope or fear, desire or aversion, complacency 
or contempt, love or hatred, joy or grief, ecstasy or anguish, valor 
or cowardice, kindness or cruelty, pity or revenge, resolution or 
despair; his large mouth, and swollen upper lip, working quietly 
or in agony, as occasions require ; his eye resting in ealmness, or 
beaming with lively emotion, or sparkling with strong feeling, or 
flashing with high passion like the thunderbolts of heaven in the 
darkness of the storm ; his arms, now hanging easy by his side, 
now outstretched, now uplifted, now waving with grace, or striking 
with the vehemence of passion ; his finger pointing where his 
piercing thoughts direct ; the easy, or quiet, or violent movements 
of his whole frame ; the bending of his body forward, or sidewise, 
or backward ; the downward or upward look ; the composed, or 
suffused, or impassioned countenance ; the watchful, shifting 
glances, taking in the field of vision, and making each one feel, 
that he is seen and individually addressed ; the theme ; himself ; 
his audience ; his fame ; his position on the subject in debate or 
under discussion ; his relation to the assembly or body before him ; 
the respect and esteem in which he is held by them ; his dignity, 
courtesy, deference ; his disinterestedness, his philanthropy, his 
patriotism ; — all these, and many others that might be named, are 
among the attributes of Mr. Clay's eloquence, and appertain to 
that accumulation and concentration of influences, which have 
given his popular harangues, his forensic efforts, his various public 
addresses, and his parliamentary speeches, so much power over 
the minds, the hearts, and the actions of his countrymen. 

PuEiTY OF DICTION Can not be separated from the attributes of 
Mr. Clay's eloquence. It is not less true, that language, properly 
selected and composed, is eloquent, than that sentiment and pas- 
sion are ; and the eloquence of passion depends on that of diction. 
Passion may even be spoiled by its dress, and lose all its force. 
Purity of diction is to thought, sentiment, and passion, as the well- 
made toilet of a lady is to her charms. It is a transparent medium, 
through which the observer looks into the soul, and beholds all its 
movements. When the diction is pare, all occasions of criticism, 



ATTRIBUTES OF MR. CLAV's ELOQUENCB. 87 

as to dress, are absent, and what is in the mind and heart of the 
speakei, passes directly into the mind and heart of the listener. 
The effect of pure diction is the same on the clown, as on the 
scholar. The former can not criticise, if he would ; the latter 
rejects his prerogative ; and both are lost in satisfaction, if both 
are interested in the subject, and otherwise equally attracted. But 
if the language were not pure, both would feel it, though possibly 
but one could point out the defect or blemish. Nature, in the 
rudest state, however, is often endowed with the highest attribute* 
of criticism. A much-admired painting of a peasant-girl, feeding 
the pigs, had sustained the severest scrutiny of connoisseurs, with 
triumph ; but, when a negro slave, used to that business, looked at 
the picture, and exc^aimed, " Who ever saw pigs feeding, without 
one foot in the trough ?" — the painting was thenceforth good for 
nothing! The best test of Mr. Clay's language, both in colloquial 
and rhetorical applications, is, that it is suited to all classes of 
persons. 

Faith in the validity and sincerity of Mr. Clay's own convic- 
tions, arising not less from faith in his general character, than from 
the artless and feeling manner of his utterance, carries with it an 
irresistible influence. All who hear him, are fully persuaded, from 
what they know of him, and by his manner, that he himself believes 
what he says. Their surrender of opinion and feeling, therefore, 
>r their acquiescence, is measured only by their will, or their in- 
terest, or their confidence in his judgment, or by a combination of 
such influences. No small part of the eloquence of Mr. Clay lies 
in this faith, which is a moral bond between him and those whom 
he addresses, dissolving in a common crucible the feelings of the 
two parties. 

Clear and lucid reasoning claims great consideration, as a 
controlling attribute of his eloquence. Other adventitious, and not 
unimportant advantages, already noticed, have contributed to the 
effect of his reasoning powers, but have only been auxiliary to their 
sway over private individuals, popular assemblies, courts, juries, 
and the legislature of the nation. Sentiment, with Mr. Clay, though 
he delights in it, is always subject to reason ; and the reasons are 
in advance of the sentiments, sustaining the relation of cause to the 
effect. Sentiment, with him, is always under discipline, and is 
often suppressed, to give more effect to the reasoning. In his 
speeches on the emancipation of South America, in 1818, there 
never was a finer field, or more provocation for sentiment ; but it 

Vol. I.—') 



88 ATTRIBUTES OF MR. CLAY S ELOQUENX'E. 

only gleams out now and then, where it could not easily be sup- 
pressed. He had a task before him. As the champion of the rights 
of man, he was, in this great enterprise, the leader before the world. 
Not only were the advocates of freedom in Europe silent, with this 
spectacle of the struggles of a continent for liberty before their eyes, 
but the executive and the Congress of the United States were at 
that time opposed to this philanthropic, chivalric movement of the 
great American statesman. They were not in the mood to enter- 
tain the sentiments appropriate to the occasion. Mr. Clay, there- 
fore, put forward reason after reason, in thick array, piled fact upon 
fact, and placed them in such relations, that each cast light on ev- 
ery other, presenting a concentration, a mountain of cumulative 
evidence, irresistible to all but those who had made up their minds 
another way. They were convinced^ but the effect of pers2iasion 
did not appear till two years afterward. Mr. Clay knew what 
would be the fate of his motion at that time ; but he was reasoning 
for the future. There are many places in these speeches, where 
one would expect to see feeling, in such a man, burst through ah 
restraints. The manifesto of the congress of the United Provinces 
of Rio del la Plata, published in 1817, and read by Mr. Clay on 
this occasion as part of his argument, was a most seductive plat- 
form, from which to pour forth a torrent of sympathy and national 
fellowship. Mr. Clay, however, left it to speak for itself, without 
a word of comment. And he judged right, that it was sufficiently 
eloquent in its own terms. Onward, right onward, he pursued his 
march of pure reasoning, and the development of facts. He was 
lowing seed for a future harvest, and reaped it in 1820 and 
1822. 

It would be impossible to point to any of Mr. Clay's speeches, 
which are not examples of the eloquence of reasoning. But those 
on the protective policy, particularly those delivered in the house 
of representatives in 1824, and in the senate in 1832, are in the 
front rank of his admirable and enduring fabrics of this description. 
They ride the rolling deep of political agitation, like an armed 
squadron, pouring forth their thunders on all sides, invulnerable to 
opponents, and forcing all considerate foes to strike, or sinking 
them in the abyss. As much as the questions involved in this 
great branch of the American system, have been debated, since 
those speeches were delivered, not a single idea, comprehending a 
PRINCIPLE, has been started, which is not to be found there. So 
mature, so comprehensive, were Mr. Clay's views, that he seems 



ATTRIBUTES OF MR. CLAY's ELOQUENCE. 89 

o have exhausted the subject, and made the task easy for his suc- 
cessors. He entered the field a pioneer, and cleared it. 

Mr. Clay's speech of March 15, 181S, on internal improvement, 
touching the constitutional question, stands unrivalled as a speci- 
pi^n of the captivating power of reasoning. The mind is led by a 
6harm, and wonders that there can be so much beauty in mere ra- 
tiocination. Courtesy to opponents is so blended with modest state- 
ments, in simple and pure language, and with an overwhelming 
concatenation of argument, that one does not think of the perfect 
confidence of the orator in his position. The strength of the mas- 
ter is entirely concealed. With an air of indifference, he gains an 
easy and certain victory. Without appearing to have any weapons 
in hand, he scatters all opposition from his path, and clears the 
field. Surrounded with light, he pours light upon all others, and 
diffuses around him a captivating influence. An opponent, 
charmed by the respect shown him, might feel a delightful sensa- 
tion from the blow that lays him prostrate. President Madison, 
President Monroe, and some others, had all the benefit of this kind 
treatment. There is no burst, not a gleam of sentiment. It is 
pure reasoning, in a path of light, that attracts all, and inclines 
them to come and bask in its beams. The federal constitution, 
which comes out of most hands an unsolved problem, in its bear- 
ings on these controverted questions, puzzling so many heads, is 
so explained and applied by this skilful master, that a child might 
understand it. 

But the most overwhelming parliamentary argument made by 
Mr. Clay, extant, is, perhaps, his speech on the subtreasury scheme, 
delivered February 19, 1838. Many are his powerful, gigantic 
efforts, that will not die, and none of his speeches can be read with- 
out an impression of their logical, convincing force. But this one 
stands like the tallest pyramid in the Egyptian sands, when regard- 
ed as an enduring structure, and like Atlas for its firmness and im- 
posing aspects. It is a novelty, on a novel occasion. History 
never before demanded precisely such an argument, and will prob- 
ably never again furnish an exactly similar occasion. Things like 
it have been, and will be. When the scheme was first brought 
forward, at the extra session of 1837, Mr. Clay was, of course, 
obliged to encounter it. But the weight of the subject, lying upon 
his mind five months longer, fraught, as he believed the project to 
be, with the most momentous consequences, brought forth this 



90 ATTRIBUTES OF MR. CLAY's ELOQUENCE. 

truly amazing effort. To describe it, would require powers equal 
to those which produced it. 

Mr. Clay's reasoning is, on all occasions, the foundation and 
body of his eloquence. He takes his station under the sunlight 
of a cloudless noon, and whatever he attempts to show, is seen. 
It is also felt, so far as the occasion requires. If the will of his 
audience is opposed, it may not be followed ; but he has done all 
that eloquence could do. All Mr. Clay's public debates, and all 
his colloquial engagements, are characterized by the same feature 
of lucid reasoning — not a part, not a word, not a thought, appears, 
that would obscure or embarrass other parts, other words, other 
thoughts. Simplicity, completeness, perfection, are the character- 
istics of his reasoning — just enough to prove the point, and no 
more. It is reasoning, chiefly — in other words, mind — that has 
given Mr. Clay his reputation and influence, as an orator and de- 
bater, though it fortunately happened, that he was possessed of 
nearly all other endowments, most required to give effect to this. 

But there is another attribute of Mr. Clay's eloquence, which, 
on occasions befitting its display — or when, with him, it is impos- 
sible it should not appear — which imparts potency to all others, 
and is itself most potent of all — a total absorption, for the time 
being, in the theme of discussion, when he is impassioned. In a 
conversation between the author and Mr. Clay, about his rfply to 
Mr. Rives, of Virginia, August 10, 1841, touching Mr. Tyler's 
veto of the bank bill, which was one of the impassioned class of 
his speeches, Mr. Clay said : " I do not know how it is with oth- 
ers, but on such occasions, I seem to be unconscious of the exter- 
nal world. Wholly engrossed by the subject before me, I lose all 
sense of personal identity, of time, or of surrounding objects." 
This indicates a state of mind with Mr. Clay, when thus excited, 
which is very uncommon, if not altogether peculiar. It would 
seem like a conversion of the animal into the spiritual — as if the 
whole man, for the time b*'mg, were spiritualized — as if he were 
all mind. He is for the moment unconscious of that external 
world, with which the animal economy and its faculties are usually 
conversant. It is absorption, mounting into abstraction — an iso- 
lated state for the occasion. It is not, therefore, strange, that a 
man of such endowments, when all his powers and faculties, cor- 
poreal as well as mental, are absorbed in a single theme — when his 
mind takes possession of his body, and the whole man is spiritual- 
ized — should produce a prodigious effect on an audience of fellow 



ATTRIBUTES OF MR. CLAY's ELOQUENCE. 01 

beings, who, sympathizing, are measurably carried into the same 
field, and forced to have like feelings. It is a settled maxim, that 
an orator must have feeling, to produce it. It is also known, that 
the more he feels, so much the more will his audience sympathize. 
But when he becomes all feeling, from the core of his heart to the 
surface of his skin, from the crown of his head to the sole of his 
foot, gushing out through every pore, and expressed through every 
organ — when body and soul seem to be all soul — one spiritual es- 
sence — then is the sway of the orator complete. It is this species 
of transient existence, commonly called absorption — but with Mr. 
Clay, on such occasions, entire absorption — which seems to have 
been the state of his feelings, in his greatest and happiest efforts. 
With this explanation, it will not be a wonder, that, on a variety of 
occasions, running through nearly half a century, Mr. Clay has 
produced such great effects by his eloquence. Many may have 
heard him, when he did not come up to this high pitch of absorp- 
tion and exertion. It could only be, when the occasions produced 
the necessary amount of excitement in the speaker. 

Many persons are still living in Kentucky, who heard Mr. Clay's 
early popular harangues in that state, when he was a stripling. 
Some of them mention with pride, that they helped draw out the 
cart, which he spoke from, in a street of Lexington, in denunciation 
of the alien and sedition laws, at the early age of twenty-one years, 
when his fame first burst forth upon the pubhc, and attracted the 
attention of the whole country. The admiration then felt, is rekin- 
dled by the rehearsal of the story. His forensic efforts in Kentucky, 
especially in criminal causes, were often exceedingly effective. 
The halls of Congress have, on many occasions, witnessed the 
surpassing power of his eloquence. But some of his best efforts 
there have been lost, by not having been reported, as is also the 
fact in regard to numerous brilliant speeches in other places. 

In 1822, a commission, composed of Mr. Clay and Mr. Bibb, 
was appointed by the legislature of Kentucky, to confer with the 
legislature of Virginia, for the adjustment of long-standing difficul- 
ties between the two states, in regard to land titles. When Ken- 
tucky was a part of Virginia, the mother commonwealth had 
neglected to make suitable regulations for the first occupants of 
her western domain. The consequence was, that emigrants, 
moving over the mountains, and settling down on the vacant, wild, 
and unsurveyed lands, after having established themselves well in 



5^2 MR. clay's eloquence. 

the world, and got their families about them, were surprised by 
other claimants of their farms, and driven from them by actions of 
ejectment, when their vigor was too much exhausted to begin the 
world anew. It was a hard lot. 

Mr. Clay has always manifested great sympathy for the pioneer 
of the wilderness. On this occasion, he represented his neighbors 
and friends, many of whom, by this means, had been robbed of 
their all, and he felt for them deeply. Besides this, on his way to 
the capital of Virginia, he had visited his native " slashes," in 
Hanover county, walked around the grave of his venerated father, 
rekindled the feelings of his childhood, and felt, that he himself 
had been a pioneer in the far west, and that he had advanced his 
fortunes, such as they were, by his own prowess and enterprise. 
When he appeared before the legislature of Virginia, he depicted, 
with a glowing pencil, the hard fate of those, whose cause he came 
to plead, and whose misfortunes were the result of neglect in the 
parent state. He gave the history of the pioneer, from the time 
of his emigration westward, till he had acquired a comfortable inde- 
pendence ; — that, as an enterprising, but poor man, he had gone 
over the AUeganies, with nothing but his own stout heart and 
strong arm ; — that he had encountered exposures to wild beasts, 
and to the insidious wiles of the savage ; — that, in reliance on the 
faith of the commonwealth of Virginia, he had chosen his lands, 
cut away the forest, erected his cabin, married his wife, reared his 
family, and imagined, that he was lord of his own domain ; and 
that, sitting there, with all needful things about him, rich as his 
heart desired, his flocks and herds grazing in his fields, his chil 
dren joyous, and the wife of his bosom partaker of all his proud 
satisfactions, in possession of an adequate inheritance for their off- 
spring, they are suddenly notified, that this estate is not theirs, but 
another's! In this way, Mr. Clay painted in lively colors the 
hardships and sufferings of the western pioneer; his separation 
from the spot of his birth, from his early neighbors, his friends, his 
relations, the graves of his ancestors ; his removal to a distant wil- 
derness, full of perils, and his privations. The feelings of his 
audience, and his own feelings, were deeply affected. In the 
progress of this appeal, a faint reminiscence of some lines of the 
bard and romancer of North Britain, struck his mind, and he be- 
gan to quote them : — 

« Lives there a man — " 

But his memory, which rarely failed, was this time at fault He 



MR. clay's eloquence. 93 

paused a moment, closed his eyes, and pressed his forehead with 
the palm of his hand, to aid his recollection. Fortunately for nim, 
his audience supposed that this pause and act were occasioned by 
the depth and power of his emotions, which certainly were deep 
and powerful, and so were theirs. The lines came to him in good 
time, and when he pronounced the words in the most feeling 
manner — 

" Lives there a man, so cold and dead. 
Who never to himself hath said, 
This is my own, my native land ?" — 

there was a profound sensation pervading the assembly, which was 
manifested in many instances by involuntary tears. 

It is natural to suppose, that Mr. Clay's visit to the " slashes of 
Hanover," and to his father's grave, after more than twenty years' 
absence, had much to do with the feeling he manifested on this oc- 
casion. Fresh from that hallowed spot, and furnished with all the 
recollections of an experience of a whole generation among the 
western pioneers, he rose to discharge his errand, from the legis- 
lature of Kentucky, to that of Virginia. It is an instinct of nature, 
a wise provision of the Creator, accommodated to man, in his nar- 
row sphere, that his earliest, most enduring, and controlling affec- 
tions should have a lodgment in and about the place of his nativity 
The home and the graves of his fathers give birth to the most 
tenacious sentiment of his being. As the mind and heart of the 
child expand, still clustering around his natal altars, and bound to 
them by indissoluble ties, he takes in a wider range of society, of 
man, and of things. The boy finds an interest in the little com- 
monwealth of his school-fellows ; the youth extends his views yet 
further, and enlarges the circle of his affections ; and the man 
launches forth on the broad field of the world, but never forgets 
where he was born and cradled, nor the grave where his father 
sleeps. 

In 1824, a bill was pending in the house of representatives, 
while Mr. Clay was speaker of that body, for pensioning the 
mother of Commodore Perry. While it was under debate in 
committee of the whole, it appeared as if it would pass by accla- 
mation. Some one of its supporters had urged, in its behalf, the 
fact of national ingratitude toward military and naval commanders. 
Struck by this charge, and impelled by a sense of duty, Mr. Clay 
-ose in ooposition to the bill. It is to be regretted, that tradition 



94 MR. clay's eloquence. 

alone has preserved any account of the remarkable speech, which 
he made on that occasion. It was doubtless one of the most effec* 
tive, as well as one of the most splendid efforts of his whole life. 
From a gentleman, the Hon. Mr. Lee, of Maryland, who was a 
member of that house, and present when this speech was delivered, 
the author has been made acquainted with a few of its thoughts, 
which were communicated by the narrator, as if he were still under 
the thrilling power of the speech itself, although twenty years had 
intervened. 

" What," said Mr. Clay, " is to be the rule or limit in grant- 
ing pensions ? For the first time, he believed, it is now proposed, 
not to extend them to the wife or to the descendants, but to the 
mother of a gallant officer. And we are pressed to do this upon 
the ground of habitual national ingratitude toward those who en- 
gage in the defence of the country ! The annals of all countries 
attest how destitute of foundation this imputation is. Look to 
the ample endowments made by England to Marlborough, Nel- 
son, Wellington, and others; and to the honors bestowed, and 
the sacrifices made, by France, to Napoleon, to say nothing of 
less distinguished chiefs, or what has been done in the United 
States. The successful military or naval commander is almost 
the exclusive subject of story, of song, and of praise. Histo- 
rians, orators, poets, sculptors, and painters, vie with each other, 
in their respective vocations, in recording, illustrating, proclaim- 
ing, and perpetuating his name, his person, and his deeds of re- 
nown. How different is the fate of the statesman ! In his quiet 
and less brilliant career, after having advanced, by the wisdom of 
his measures, the national prosperity to the highest point of ele- 
vation, and after having sacrificed his fortune, his time, and per- 
haps his health, in the public service, what, too often, are the re- 
wards that await him ? Who thinks of his family, impoverished 
by the devotion of his attention to his country, instead of their ad- 
vancement? Who proposes to pension him — much less his 
mother'} No, sir, while we ought, indeed, to be just, generous, 
grateful to our defenders, they are not the only class of merito- 
rious public servants ; and all history is false, if there is not often 
an excess, rather than a defect of public gratitude, toward milita- 
ry and naval heroes." 

Of course, this is but an imperfect sketch, even of the thoughts 
here disinterred from the grave of time, by the reminiscences of 
one who heard them. Doubtless there were other passages, not 
less striking, and far more thrilling in their power, judging from 
the effect produced by this burst of eloquence It was electric 



MR. clay's eloquence. 95 

Instead of an overwhelming majority for the bill, there appeared 
now to be almost an unanimous feeling against it. A distinguish- 
ed member of the house, who had favored the bill, remarked, as 
soon as Mr. Clay sat down, to the gentleman named above, as the 
author of this information, *' It was a thumper, such as I never 
heard." An eloquent member from South Carolina, after Mr. 
Clay had resumed the speaker's chair, and the bill was reported, 
endeavored to rally the house in support of it, but his effort was 
vain and fruitless. 

The soldier's fame is usually acquired by the overthrow o 
states and empires, by the pillage and conflagration of cities, b; 
the groans of the dying, by the sorrows of bereaved ones, and by 
the impoverishment of mankind ; the statesman's, by the diffusion 
and multiplication of blessings to all, of every kind, and in every 
relation. The soldier's profession is a necessary evil. He may 
be useful, and deserve praise. The sword of Washington was 
drawn for his country, for freedom, and he is therefore honored , 
but his greatest honor, the foundation of his spotless reputation, 
was his voluntary resignation of the position he had gained by his 
military achievements. It is not as a soldier, that the world bows 
before his name ; but as a patriot. The soldier is a destruc- 
TioNisT ; the statesman's functions, properly exercised, approxi- 
mate to the beneficent labors of the Deity. If the patriot-soldier 
deserves a statue, the patriot-statesman deserves a monument. 
Washington was both, and the honorary rewards of each have 
been accorded to him — though but poorly worthy of his great 
name. It will yet be seen, that Mr. Clay has at least proved him- 
self a patriot-statesman. Nevertheless, it did not occur to him, 
in the utterance of the speech above alluded to, that he was plead- 
ing his own cause. The act itself was one of the proofs of his 
patriotism ; and in it was exhibited one of the most powerful at- 
tributes of his eloquence — absorjjtion in his theme. It was one 
of those impromptu effusions, called forth by a startling thought, 
or by an unexpected and exciting occasion, in which the man ap- 
pears all soul, and which, if not Mr. Clay's sole patent, are rarely 
exhibited by others with equal power and effect. 

Among these lost speeches of Mr. Clay, the memory of which 
lives while they who heard them live, and the thought of which 
awakens to new life the feelings they produced, was one delivered 
at Lexington, as late as May, 1843, the occasion and history of 
which are as follows : After Mr. Clay had retired from the sen- 



96 MR. clay's eloquence. 

ate of the United States, in 1842, till the next year, during which 
time it was expected that he would be nominated for president in 
1844, great efforts were made in Kentucky, and throughout the 
Union, by his political opponents, not only to vilify him, but to 
bring into odium the twenty-seventh Congress, which was the last 
in which Mr. Clay had had a seat as a senator, and the endeavors 
of which were chiefly directed to establish the policy and meas- 
ures called for by the political revolution of 1840. Mr. Clay 
was virulently traduced by some base persons in Lexington and 
that neighborhood. As a perpetual dropping wears a stone, so 
these incessant attacks, though false and foul, and known to be 
such, if unnoticed and unrepelled, might produce injurious effects 
on the common mind. He, therefore, resolved, and caused a no- 
tice to be published, that he would meet his fellow-citizens of 
Fayette and the adjoining counties, at Lexington, on a day specified, 
to repel these charges. His friends, whom, on this occasion, he 
had not consulted, regretted the step, as being unnecessary. 
They thought these attacks unworthy of notice. This difference 
of opinion was painful to Mr. Clay, and no doubt contributed not 
a little to that depth and power of feeling, which he manifested on 
the occasion. The notice brought together a great concourse of 
people, whom no place, but the public square, could accommo- 
date. The patriarch-statesman was to appear before his old 
friends and neighbors, of forty years' standing, once more, and for 
the last time, in that capacity, in which he had not been heard for 
many years, and in which no one ever expected to hear him again. 
And it was the vile tongue of calumny, that was to be encoun- 
tered. 

The following account of this address was furnished for the 
author, by a highly-respected fellow-citizen of Mr. Clay, and the 
words of the opening, as quoted, are exact. When Mr. Clay 
rose, he was evidently much excited. He commenced by saying, 
with marked emphasis — " Fellow-citizens : I am now an old man — 
quite an old man." Here he bent himself downward. " But 
yet, it will be found, I am not too old to vindicate my principles, 
to stand by my friends, or to defend myself" — raising his voice, 
louder and louder, at each successive member of the sentence, 
and elevating his person in a most impressive manner. He then 
proceeded : — 

" It so happens, that I have again located myself in the prac- 
tice of my profession, in an office within a few rods of the one 



MR. CLAY S ELOQUENCE. 97 

which I occupied, when, more than forty years ago, I first came 
among you, an orphan and a stranger, and your fathers took me 
by the hand, and made me what 1 am. I feel like an old stag, 
which has been long coursed by the hunters and the hounds, 
through brakes and briers, and o'er distant plains, and has at last 
returned himself to his ancient lair, to lay him down and die. And 
yet, the vile curs of party are barking at my heels, and the blood- 
hounds of personal malignity are aiming at my throat. I scorn 

AND DEFY THEM, AS I EVER DID." 

When he uttered these last words, he raised himself to his most 
erect posture, and elevated his hands and arms, wide extended 
above his head, seeming to have nearly doubled the height of his 
tall person. The effect was overwhelming — indescribable. 

To have any approximate idea of the effect of this speech, which 
continued for hours, fully sustained throughout, in vindication of 
the twenty-seventh Congress, of whig policy and principles, and 
in defence of the orator himself, against his calumniators, one 
should have a view of all the attributes of eloquence ascribed to 
Mr. Clay in this chapter, the use of scarcely one of which was 
wanting on that occasion. Nor should it be forgotten, that he was 
then sixty-six years old. It may be asked, if any orator can be 
named in all history, who ever produced such an effect, in so few 
words, and those the mere exordium of his oration ? They all 
hnew, that what he said was true. " I am an old man." Didn't 
they know that ? And the moment he said it, they began to weep. 
When he pointed to his present office, and to the place of the old 
one, a few rods distant, they all knew that. " I came here, more 
than forty years ago, an orphan and a stranger." They knew 
that. " Your fathers took me by the hand, and made me what I 
am." It is impossible to conceive of the effect of this. They 
wept like children, and only wished they could do as much 
They could at least stand by him. '* I feel like an old stag." 
Now he is speaking to Kentucky hunters. Their ears are all 
erect for what is coming. And by the time he had gone through 
with the figure, and its application, the struggle between the sym- 
pathy which streamed from the eyes of some, and the indignation 
which clenched the fists of others, of that vast multitude — all 
knowing it was all true, every word of it — was like the throes of 
a mountain in agony. A part of the sublimity of the spectacle 
consisted in a concern, what might be the fruit of such passion. 
For some of his defamers were present. But when Mr. Clav 



98 MR. clay's eloquence. 

rose, in all the majesty of his own loftiness, threw his arms on 
high, and his voice out into the heavens — he stood under its can- 
opy — and said, " I scorn and defy them, as I ever did," they 
dashed away their tears, and resolved to be as stout of heart as 
he, and to vindicate his honor. A reply was expected. But 
prudence got the better of the purpose. 

Many of the lost speeches of Mr. Clay are among the most ef- 
fective he ever delivered. None of those uttered by him during 
the agitation of the Missouri question, are preserved ; and it said, 
that he spoke between twenty and thirty times. He was the mas- 
ter-spirit of that exciting and thrilling debate, and was alone the 
cause of the settlement of a question which shook the nation to 
its foundations. Some of those addresses have been spoken of 
as exceeding in power and effect anything Mr. Clay ever did. 
All his speeches, social, popular, forensic, and parliamentary, 
from the beginning to the end of his career as an orator and de- 
bater in these several spheres of action, if they had been preserved 
and collected, would make a small library. The best compila- 
tion ever published, is that by Daniel Mallory, New York, 1843, 
2 vols., containing eighty in all, beginning with his speech in 
Congress, in senate, April 6, 1810, and ending with his address 
to Mr. Mendenhall, October 1, 1842. The largest portion of 
them were speeches delivered in Congress, on great public and 
national questions. 



%ia. CLAl S PROFESSIONAL CAREER. 99 



CHAPTER V. 

MR. clay's professional CAREER. 

It will have been observed, that Chancellor Wythe was chiefly 
instrumental, in inciting his young protege to the study of the law ; 
that he guided his studies for the term of four years ; and then so 
arranged matters, as to bring his pupil under Attorney-General 
Brooke, as an attorney's clerk and a candidate for admission to the 
bar. These five years, in such relations and with such advan- 
tages, constituted Mr. Clay's academical and professional educa 
tion. The concurring influences of the chancellor's paternal 
promptings, his own ardor in a course of reading that suited his 
genius, and the constant practical exercise of his pen in the most 
profound legal investigations, as an amanuensis, could not have 
been a bad school of preparation for his year of entire devotion to 
the study of law in the office of the attorney-general. From the 
known character of his mind, it can not be doubted, that the attain- 
ments he made, both in academical and legal learning, during this 
period, were rather beyond, than short of, the acquisitions, with 
which young men usually enter upon the practice of law, after 
having graduated, first at an academical, and then at a law school. 
The society, the example, the advice, and the kindness of those 
distinguished individuals, with whose acquaintance, and to some 
extent intimacy, young Henry Clay was honored, at Richmond, 
were powerful incentives to his exertions. 

Nevertheless, Mr. Clay devoted himself some months after his 
arrival in Lexington, to the further prosecution of his legal studies, 
before he asked for admission as a practitioner in the Fayette court 
of quarter sessions. It was perhaps because of his diffidence in 
coming to the same bar with George Nicholas, John Brackenridge, 
James Hughes, James Brown, William Murray, and others, a 
phalanx of formidable competitors, either of whom would have 
stood high at any bar in the country. 



100 MR. clay's professional CARF-RR. 

It was during this private pursuit of his studies, that he became 
a member of a young men's debating club at Lexington, and of his 
participation in the exercises of which, the following anecdote is 
narrated : One evening, a question that was under discussion, was 
about lo be put, when Mr. Clay, who as yet had taken no part in 
the debates since he joined them — had not indeed in any form 
been known as a speaker in Lexington — was heard to say, in a 
low voice, that he did not think the question was exhausted. The 
slight acquaintance he had made, had gained him respect, and 
raised expectation. To hear him speak, on such an occasion, was 
the very thing that was desired. Immediately, several who heard 
his remark, rose simultaneously to call on the chairman : " Don't 
put the question yet. Mr. Clay will speak." Probably he had 
not intended to speak, but now all eyes were turned to him, and 
he was obliged to rise. " Gentlemen of the Jury," said Mr. Clay. 
Perceiving his mistake, he became confused. But, encouraged 
by the politeness of the chairman, and of his fellow-members, he 
began again : " Gentlemen of the Jury." At last, however, he 
became more self-possessed, spoke to the question, to the delight 
and admiration of the club, and was cordially and loudly cheered. 
James Hughes, Esq., above named as a member of the Lexington 
bar, who was present on this occasion, always insisted, during his 
life, that this was the best speech Mr. Clay ever made. It is cer- 
tainly remarkable, that, after having acquired such a reputation as 
the leader and star of the rhetorical society at Richmond, he should 
have been so embarrassed on rising to speak in this club at Lex- 
ington. But he had now entered a new field, where all his for- 
tunes for life were pending, and naturally diffident, as all know, who 
are acquainted with him, even through life, he was for a moment 
not himself. He trembled for his fate. It is manifest, however, 
that, if he had not acquired the esprit du corps of the legal profes- 
sion, he had at least thought of a jury. As the stump orator 
thinks of nothing but " Fellow-citizens," and as the parliamenta- 
rian, or M. C, naturally cries out, " Mr. Speaker," whatever 
assembly they may happen to be addressing, so the ambitious 
young barrister, who has been long time dreaming of the impor- 
tance of getting a verdict in his favor, rising unexpectedly and in 
embarrassing circumstances, though he were speaking to a com- 
pany of ladies, or delivering a funeral oration, might be excused 
for opening with — " Gentlemen of the Jury." They who have 
been acquainted with Mr. Clay's perfect self-command in after life 



MR. clay's professional CAREER. JQl 

(which is not inconsistent with natural diffidence), in whatever po- 
sition he has been placed, private or public, on the stump or ia a 
court of justice, in the office of diplomacy or in the senate of the 
nation, will be not a little amused at this betrayal of an innocent 
human infirmity. And they who have quailed before his great 
powers, envied his exalted gifts, and perhaps hated him for his 
superiority, will not be very sorry to find one evidence of a com- 
mon humanity. 

Allowing Mr. Clay to have been sincere — as doubtless he was — 
in the brief review of his early history, cited in the first chapter, 
from his speech at Lexington, in 1842, where he says, " I remem- 
ber how comfortable I thought I should be, if I could make one 
one hundred pounds, Virginia money, per year, and with what 
delight I received the first fifteen shillings' fee," it is convincing 
evidence of his total unconsciousness, at that time, of his own 
superior powers, and that his expectations were not only moderate, 
but that he was even anxious how he should succeed in obtaining 
a livelihood, in paying his " weekly board." It is not less evi- 
dent, by his next remark, on the same occasion, made in the pres- 
ence of thousands, who were themselves witnesses of the facts, that 
he no sooner began his professional career, than he found as much 
business as he wanted, or could do. " My hopes were more 
than realized. I immediately rushed into a successful and lucra- 
tive practice." 

Notwithstanding it may be assumed, that Mr. Clay had, by his 
industry and application, acquired a good knowledge of law — 
more, probably, than is common in an equal term of study — ^yet, 
it was not legal attainments alone, nor chiefly, which put him so 
suddenly forward, and gave him such reputation, at the bar. It 
was not alone his client's case, as it involved questions of law — all 
which were generally easily mastered by him — but it was rather, 
and more especially, his intuitive discernment of all its relations, 
as allied to the sympathies of human nature, which gave him such 
ascendency and power over courts, juries, and the common mind. 
It was a quick apprehension of how men feel in given cases and 
given circumstances, and how different characters view the same 
facts, that enabled him to carry men's minds with himself. It was 
not artifice, but honest judgment. Men's convictions are not usu- 
ally abiding, when carried by trick, nor are they satisfactory at the 
moment of being entertained ; but they yield to the slightest inva- 
sion, throw back the captive to an opposite opinion, and create 



102 MR. clay's professional career. 

disrespect for the deceiver. But the perfect honesty of Mr. Clay'a 
views was always evident to others, and for that reason, sympa- 
thetically and powerfully affected their minds. The convictions 
he has produced, whether on individuals, or in the public mind, 
have generally been abiding. This knowledge of the way into 
men's minds, and into their hearts, may perhaps be regarded as 
the secret of Mr. Clay's influence, though it can not be separated 
from those extraordinary attributes of true eloquence, which are 
vested in person, voice, countenance, and manner, in all of which, 
for the purposes of conviction and persuasion, Mr. Clay has been 
unrivalled, throughout his professional and political career. 

As Mr. Clay's life has been chiefly devoted to the public, in the 
offices of legislation and government, it will be apparent, that his 
professional practice has not only been interrupted, but often, and 
for protracted periods, entirely suspended. Of the hundreds of 
cases, which have been confided to his management, in the various 
state and federal courts, during the progress of nearly half a cen- 
tury, the notice of a few will suffice to exhibit his character as a 
jurist and an advocate. 

In regard to civil cases, one stands very prominent in the prac- 
tice of his early life, which is a striking example of his intuitive 
recognition of the stronger points of a legal question, in connexion 
with facts involved in controversy. It was a case of great interest 
to the parties, and was tried in Fayette circuit, the county of Mr. 
Clay's domicil. It happened in the opening of the trial, that he 
was obliged to be absent, and leave the case in the hands of his 
associate counsel. Two days were occupied, after the evidence 
was concluded, in the discussion of points of law between his col- 
league and his opponents, which were to govern the instructions 
of the court to the jury, on each of which his colleague was foiled. 
As a consequence, the case was about to be submitted for a ver- 
dict against Mr. Clay's client. At that moment Mr. Clay appeared 
in court. He had heard nothing of the evidence, and knew 
nothing of the discussion which had been had on the points of law, 
which were to determine the case. Having solicited the indul- 
gence of the court for a few remarks, and consulted a moment 
with his colleague, he exhibited a statement, as to the form of in- 
structions, in which he wished the case should be submitted, so 
novel, and so entirely satisfactory to the court, as to destroy the 
argument of the opposing counsel ; and in less than half an hour 



MR. clay's Professional carbbb. 103 

after he entered the courthouse, the case was decided in favor of 
Ids client. 

In 1819, the state of Ohio passed a law to tax the branches of 
the bank of the United States within her limits, with a view to 
expel the bank from the state. The tax was $50,000 annually on 
each branch, making no difference between the branch at Cin- 
cinnati, with a capital of $1,500,000, and that at Chilicothe, 
with a capital of $500,000. As the tax exceeded the profits 
of business, it amounted to an act of confiscation. The demand 
was of course resisted, and an injunction was obtained from the 
circuit court of the United States, to arrest execution by the state 
authorities. But the injunction was disregarded, and the first an- 
nual tax of $100,000 for the two branches, was forcibly obtained 
from the vaults of the branch at Chilicothe. The case, having 
been first heard and decided in the district court of the United 
States, against the st«»te of Ohio, was carried by appeal, in 1824, 
to the supreme bench at Washington, Mr. Clay counsel for the 
respondents. It will be seen, that the question to be tried, was 
the coBStitutionaHty of the bank of the United States. This was 
Mr. Clay's appropriate field, equally as a lawyer and a statesman. 
His legal acquirements, and his knowledge of the federal consti- 
tution, were tasked to their utmost, and the skill he displayed on 
the occasion, was only equalled by his eloquence. It is needless 
to say, he was triumphant. The argument, pro and con, and the 
decision of the court, will be found in Wheaton's Reports, vol. ix. 
page 738. 

As a matter of history, the fact is sufficiently notorious, that the 
lack of an adequate protective policy, after the war of 1812, for 
many years operated to bring the United States in debt to foreign 
parts, especially to Great Britain, by excessive imports. In the 
same manner, and for the same reason, as the channels of domestic 
trade then existed, there was a large balance against the west, in 
favor of the east, of the United States, constantly draining the for- 
mer of its money. Europe drew from the Atlantic states, and 
these drew from the western states, and the currency of the coun- 
try was almost annihilated. In this state of things, Kentucky, in 
1820, attempted a great and hazardous experiment, in the estab- 
lishment of the Commojiwealth bank, with a nominal capital of two 
millions of dollars, based on the credit of the state, without a 
penny of money. There was, however, a substantial, it might 

Vol. L— 6 



104 MB. clay's professional career. 

perhaps be called ample, security, in the pledge of the public lands 
of the state, worth from five to six millions of dollars. But there 
was nothing wherewithal to redeem the notes, except in the circle 
which brought them to the state treasury, where they were bound 
to receive them for all dues, in which current, of course, this cur- 
rency ran, as there was no other open for it. The state was com- 
pelled to subsist on its own breeze of credit. It had sown the 
wind, and must reap it. Fortunate, that it was not forced to reap 
the whirlwind. The public lands, held liable for this currency, 
were in fact a substantial capital. The money was at first in good 
credit ; afterward, by a panic, it depreciated rapidly, to a low price ; 
but it rose again to par, was finally all redeemed, and the bank 
wound up. The state was benefited forty thousand dollars by ac- 
cidents, which prevented the return of that amount. 

It will not be surprising, that an experiment of this kind should 
have raised the question, whether the state of Kentucky had not 
violated the federal constitution, by issuing "bills of credit." The 
bank was a commonwealth institution, for the issues of which the 
commonwealth was responsible. Was not every note a state "bill 
of credit?" The supreme court of the United States, through 
Chief Justice Marshall, had previously pronounced a decision, in 
the case of Craig against the state of Missouri, which was sup- 
posed to involve the same principle, and it would be hard to show 
that it did not. If so, and if that decision was correct, the state 
of Kentucky was clearly in the wrong. The question was brought 
to the supreme tribunal in 1837, in a way not very creditable to 
the morality of the parties, Briscoe and others, inasmuch as they 
sought to be released from an obligation, for which they had re- 
ceived a consideration in full. If, however, they aimed only to 
try the question for public purposes, and not to avail themselves 
of a benefit, their course might wear a different aspect. Mr. Clay 
and B. Hardin, Esq., were employed for the bank of the common- 
wealth. Chief Justice Marshall, who had pronounced the former 
decision, supposed to involve this principle, was now no more. To 
expect to turn a court of such dignity and weight against itself, 
might seem presumptuous. But Mr. Clay took up his position : 
These notes were not bills of the state of Kentucky, but of a cor- 
poration created by it. If this could be maintained, there was an 
end of the argument. Every one knows how much such a cause 
depends on the ability of counsel. It was managed m masterly 
style, and it is sufficient praise to say, that the court were compel- 



MR. clay's professional CAREER. 105 

led to decide in favor of the bank, apparently against its formei 
judgment. Mr. Justice Story dissented, and threw himself back 
on the decision pronounced by Judge Marshall. See Peters's 
Reports, vol. xi., p. 257. 

In 1841, a case came up before the supreme bench, from Mis- 
sissippi, involving interests to the amount of three millions of dol- 
lars, Groves and others against Slaughter. The state constitution 
of 1832 had prescribed, that slaves should not be brought into 
the state as merchandise, after May 1, 1833, allowing immigrants, 
however, to bring them in. As the constitution enacted no penal- 
ties, it was supposed to have only the effect of a mandate on the 
legislature to provide for the execution of this pohcy, which was 
neglected dll 1837, except in the imposition of a fine. During 
the period of this inaction of the legislature on this clause of the 
constitution, vast numbers of slaves were brought into Mississippi 
from other states, apparently in violation of this article of funda- 
mental law, supposed to amount in value to the sum above speci- 
fied. The traders paid the fine enacted by the state. The plain- 
tiffs in error, abovenamed, set up for repudiation of their debts for 
slaves, on the ground, that they were introduced unconstitution- 
ally ! They still held the property, but were willing to be excused 
from paying for it! It is not stated, whether this was the first 
example of repudiation in Mississippi, or whether it was the effect 
of example. Mr. Clay, Mr. Webster, and Mr. Jones, were asso- 
ciated as counsel for the defendants in error. The question was 
a complicated one, and in many of its aspects, seemed to open a 
way to the putting of three millions of property afloat, that nobody 
could tell whose it was. In view of this incertitude, Mr. Clay 
characteristically exclaimed, in the course of his argument, "Are 
they [the negroes] free? If free, it would be some consola- 
tion. But there is no fi"eedom for such persons in Mississippi ; 
and those who purchased them, and seek now to escape fi-om pay- 
ing for them, continue to hold them ; and against moral rectitude, 
insist on their ownership, acquired in violation of the laws of 
Mississippi ! It would be gratifying to those who love free- 
dom — and who does not love freedom? — if the negroes were free." 
It will not be surprising, that, with the talents of Clay, Webster, 
and Jones, enlisted against this species of repudiation, it should 
have failed in the supreme court of the United States. This, too, 
was one of the occasions, in civil practice, when Mr. Clay di» 



106 MR. clay's professional career. 

played his transcendant abilities, in the happiest and most effective 
manner. See Peters'^ Reports, vol. xv., p. 449. 

The first remarkable criminal case, in which Mr. Clay was en- 
gaged, was that of a Mrs. Phelps, wife of a respectable farmer, of 
respectable parentage, and not otherwise notorious for offences; 
but in this she stood accused of the crime of murder, in having 
killed her sister-in-law, Miss Phelps, with a musket, which, in a 
moment of passion, she seized, and fired, aiming at her sister, who 
instantly expired, after having exclaimed, *' Sister, you have killed 
me !" The evidence of the fact was established incontestably, and 
no effort was made by Mr. Clay, acting in her defence, to invali- 
date it. The life of a woman, apparently forfeited to the law, was 
pending. 

It has often been said of Mr. Clay, not without reason, by those 
who have known him longest and best, that he never engaged in a 
criminal cause for the sake of triumph, nor to disappoint justice, 
but to save life, or mitigate punishment — for the positive pleasure 
of helping those in peril, after having satisfied himself, that they 
had claims; and that, when once he has enlisted in a cause of 
such deep and profound sympathy, for reasons commending them- 
selves to his heart, he is in earnest. This may easily be believed, 
from his character, before considered, as a man of feeling. He 
could not deny, that Mrs. Phelps had killed Miss Phelps, in the 
manner proved. But, the criminal was a woman. She was of a 
respectable family, the wife of a respectable man, who stood by 
her side. She had not before been accused of fault, so far as ap- 
peared. It was indeed a shocking crime. Peradventure, no one 
had been more shocked, than the perpetrator. In theory and in 
fact, passion is insanity — delirium. A dreadful crime had been 
committed, when reason was dethroned, and all the vice of the 
soul was in the ascendant. Penitence comes too late; neverthe- 
less it comes. The wife and the husband are there, pleading for 
mercy — the latter forced to forgive the death of his own sister, by 
the hand of his own wife. Is there no exception to a general 
rule — no rescue from a common law ? If the court and jury had 
been moved by any such appeals, to make an exception, where 
could they stop? They waver, by the pleadings of the advocate, 
and the advocate prevails, not only to save life, but to obtain a 
mitigated punishment, which contemplates the restoration of the 
unhappy woman to her husband and family. 



ME. clay's professional cakeee. 107 

It has never been averred, that the court, or the jury, or the 
public, were afterward dissatisfied with this decision. The advo- 
cate convinced all, that it was proper. What shall be said ? That 
he made and dictated law for the occasion ? It would seem to be 
an anomalous verdict. Such is the power of man over man, in 
the action of the machinery of the sc: ial state. It was the ma- 
chinery of the law; but the product vas a novelty. Mr. Clay, 
though young, had already acquired much fame in civil suits. It 
is needless to say, that the result of this trial, which had so natu- 
rally and intensely interested the wide community, established his 
reputation as a criminal lawyer. 

Not long after this, Mr. Clay was engaged to defend two Ger- 
mans, father and son, in Harrison county, who were indicted for 
murder in the first degree, and of very aggravated character. The 
evidence of the fact, as in the case of Mrs. Phelps, left no room 
for doubt. Not hoping to prevent a verdict against the prisoners, 
Mr. Clay's first object was to save life. After five days' struggle 
with the counsel for the prosecution, he obtained a verdict for man- 
slaughter. He then surprised the court with a motion for an ar- 
rest of judgment, and after an argument protracted for a whole 
day, the court was forced to grant it, the consequence of which 
was a discharge of the prisoners ! A remarkable incident of this 
trial would have been sufficient to commemorate it, apart from its 
extraordinary and unexpected result. The wife of one, and mother 
of the other, of the two prisoners, had been a spectator of the 
trial, in a retired part of the court-room, with an interest that may 
more easily be conceived than described. When advised of the 
final decision, she rushed through the crowd and over the bar, in 
presence of the court, threw herself on the neck of the dehverer 
of her husband and son, and clung to him so earnestly and so long, 
that he was forced to disengage himself with a degree of violence. 
It was a touching scene of nature, well worth witnessing, though 
not perhaps very much coveted by the object of these grateful ef- 
fusions. It was in fact a handsome young man, in the arms of a 
not very handsome old woman; but the moral of that spectacle 
was an ample equivalent for the otherwise unnatural conjunction. 
It is besides an evidence of the power of Mr. Clay's eloquence at 
that period. The old lady had witnessed and heard all, knew to 
whom and to what she was indebted, and therefore bounced upon 
him with irrepressible emotion. In ordinary circumstances, the 



108 MR. clay's professional career. 

scene would have been ludicrous ; but, in such a case, it couia 
not be looked upon with other feelings than those of sympathy ana 
respect. 

The next case, in the history of Mr. Clay's defence of crimi- 
nals, is that of one Willis, of Fayette county, who was accused of 
murder, also of peculiar atrocity. Mr. Clay succeeded in dividing 
the jury, so that they could not agree. A motion for a new trial, 
at the next session of the court, was heeird and granted. Mr. Clay 
did not object to this course, but at the second trial, he startled the 
court, in his address to the jury, with the announcement of the 
principle, that no man could be twice put in jeopardy of his \ik for 
the same offence. The court interfered, and forbade the use of that 
argument, whereupon, Mr. Clay, in a dignified and respectful man- 
ner, declared, that he could not proceed, unless he were permitteo 
to take that course — took up his bag and books, and retired. 
This decisive step threw all the responsibility on the court, who, 
apparently in doubt, or overawed by the character of Mr. Clay, 
sent a messenger after him, inviting his return, and informing him 
that he should be allowed to manage the defence in his own way. 
He accordingly went back, pressed the point on which be had 
been stopped, and on that ground, without any regard to the evi- 
dence, obtained from the jury a verdict of acquittal for the prisoner. 

It is remarkable, that no person, put in peril of life, by process 
of the criminal code, ever invoked the aid of Mr. Clay, without 
being saved. The office of attorney for the commonwealth, had 
been frequently urged upon him, and in one instance he was in- 
duced to accept it temporarily, until he could get a friend appoint- 
ed, who, he thought, merited it. But the first criminal case that fell 
into his hands, as prosecuting attorney for the state, was that of a 
poor, but high-minded slave, who had been respected and valued 
by his master for his pride and ambition ; but, having been unfor- 
tunately left in charge of an overseer, a white man, in the master's 
absence, he was treated harshly, and at last, when struck by the 
overseer, he seized an axe, and killed him. In the case of a free 
man, this would have been manslaughter ; but, being a slave, 
whose duty it was to submit to chastisement, it was murder, and 
the prosecuting attorney was obliged to treat it as such. The 
slave was sentenced to be hung, and died with a spirit of heroism 
and self-respect, that excited admiration. Mr. Clay resigned his 
commission in disgust, though the result would doubtless have 



MR. clay's professional CAREER. 109 

been the same, in a case so clear, in the hands of any other man, 
unless Mr. Clay himself had been the defender. That possibility, 
perhaps, was one of the grounds of his regret. He never ceased 
to reflect on the fate of this slave, but with sorrow. 

The political misdemeanors of Col. Aaron Burr constitute a 
subject, which, in the United States, will never cease to be of con- 
siderable historical interest. Before noticing Mr. Clay's agency 
in defending him, on two several occasions, it may be proper to 
observe, that, some time previous to Col. Burr's first arrest, two 
gentlemen, by the names of Street and Wood, had removed from 
Virginia, to Frankfort, Ky., and established a paper, entitled " The 
Western World,'''' in which they had imputed to several distin- 
guished citizens of Kentucky a criminal design of alienating the 
western states from the Union, and annexing them to the Spanish 
dominions. There is not wanting evidence, that the Spanish 
authorities in the southwest had desired this, and that they had 
rakon some improper steps. But the indiscriminate charges of 
ihe " Western World" implicated men, who were not only per- 
fectly innocent, but eminently loyal to the Union, such as Judge 
Linis, who afterward brought a libel suit against one of the con- 
ductois of this paper. Street, and obtained exemplary damages, 
Mr. Clay having been engaged as counsel for the prosecution. 

In 1806, Col. Burr was arrested in Kentucky, through the 
agency of Col. Daviess, district attorney for the United States, 
charged with criminal designs against the Union, and with getting 
up a military expedition in the west, for purposes then unknown 
but in violation of federal laws forbidding such enterprises. The 
people of Kentucky very naturally presumed, that this charge 
against Col. Burr was equally unfounded, as that which had pre- 
viously been made against some of their own citizens, and were 
predisposed to sympathize with him. Mr. Clay, after having 
received from Col. Burr a plausible statement, and the most sol- 
emn assurances, of his innocence, and in view of what had before 
occurred of a like character, in regard to men known to be inno 
cent, could but feel, that Burr might be an injured man, arrested 
and to be tiied, in a state remote from his own, and remote from 
his friends, under a grave and weighty charge. Besides, that the 
laws and institutions of the country guaranty to an accused per- 
son, a fair trial and all just aids, it was an appeal to sympathy, to 
feelings of a high and chivalric character, and Mr. Clay generously 



110 MR. clay's professional career. 

enlisted, assisted by Col. John Allen. Col. Burr sent them a 
liberal retaining fee, which was declined, as they were merely dis- 
charging the duties of hospitalhy to a distinguished member of 
their own profession, who had also been distinguished in the coun- 
cils of the nation. The case was brought in the federal court at 
Frankfort. But the district attorney was unprepared with evi- 
dence, and no indictment was found. 

Not long afterward Colonel Burr was arrested again in Ken- 
tucky, on the same charges, and again applied to Mr. Clay. It 
was certainly no slender compliment, that a man of Colonel Burr's 
sagacity and experience, should a second time request the aid of 
so young an advocate, about thirty years old, in a cause so mo- 
mentous to himself, and involving questions that might puzzle the 
heads of the oldest and most skilful jurists — questions new and 
untried in the juridical history of the country, connected with the 
loftiest and most responsible department of federal jurisdiction. 
But Mr. Clay, having been recently elected by the legislature of 
Kentucky to the senate of the United States, to fill the place va- 
cated by the resignation of the Hon. John Adair, felt a delicacy in 
complying with this second application of Colonel Burr, on account 
of his new and intimate relations to the general government, though 
there was no law against it. But Colonel Burr pressed his appli- 
cation with importunity, in a letter to Mr. Clay, of December 1, 
1806, of which the following is an extract: — 

" I have no design, nor have I taken any measure, to promote 
a dissolution of the Union, or the separation of any one or more 
states from the residue. I have neither published a line on this 
subject, nor has any one through my agency, or with my knowl- 
edge. I have no design to intermeddle with the government, or 
to disturb the tranquillity of the United States, or of the territories, 
or any part of them. I have neither issued, nor signed, nor prom- 
ised, any commission to any person, for any purpose. I do not 
own a musket nor bayonet, nor any single article of military stores, 
nor does any person for me, by my authority, or with my knowl- 
edge. My views have been fully explained to and approved by 
several of the principal officers of government, and, I believe, are 
well understood by the administration, and seen by it with com- 
placency ; they are such as every man of honor, and every good 
citizen, must approve. Considering the high station you now fill 
in our national councils, I have thought these explanations proper, 
as well to counteract the chimerical tales, which malevolent per- 
sons have so industriously circulated, as to satisfy you. that you 



MR. CLAY^S PROFESSIONAL CAREER. Ill 

have not espoused the cause of a man in any way unfriendly to the 
laws, or the interests of the country." 

To say, that Mr. Clay's regard for Colonel Burr had not been 
disturbed by rumor, and this persistance of the government in re- 
newing accusations against him, would probably not be true. But 
his well-known ingenuousness, and his easy susceptibility under an 
appeal of this kind, prevailed over his reluctance to engage in this 
cause a second time. An indictment was submitted to the grand 
jury, who returned it rwt a true bill, stating, that nothing had ap- 
peared in the evidence submitted to them, to justify the charges, 
or to excite further inquietude. This finding was received by the 
crowds of people assembled in the capitol at Frankfort on the oc- 
casion with great applause. 

But when Mr. Clay went to Washington, to take his seat in the 
senate, an interview with the president (Mr. Jefferson) put this 
matter in a new light. Mr. Jefferson exhibited to Mr. Clay Col. 
Burr's letter in cipher, which had been transmitted by Col. Swart- 
wout to General Wilkinson, commander of the army of the United 
States, containing a partial disclosure of Burr's criminal designs. 
It was doubdess mortifying to Mr. Clay, to be obliged to believe, 
that he and the people of Kentucky had been deceived as to the 
true character of Burr. He at the same time handed over to Mr. 
Jefferson Colonel Burr's letter to him, soliciting his professional 
aid, from which the above extract is taken. 

In 1815, after the peace, Mr. Clay, on his return from Ghent, 
was entertained in New York, by public and private demonstra- 
tions of respect, for the distinguished and patriotic part he had 
acted, as one of the commissioners in the negotiation of the treaty, 
and on that occasion he one day encountered Colonel Burr in a 
court-room at the city-hall. Colonel Burr, doubtless, had taken 
pains to meet him. Having greatly changed in personal appear- 
ance, Mr. Clay did not recognise him, till he approached, and 
offered his hand. In view of what had transpired, in evidence of 
Colonel Burr's guiU, since they had last met, Mr. Clay instinct- 
ively refused to give his hand, raising it to his bosom, and thrust- 
ing it under his waistcoat. Colonel Burr, affecting not to notice 
the disrespect, said a few words, and then bowed himself out, after 
having intimated to Mr. Clay, that he would like to see him in pri- 
vate. Mr. Clay politely gave his address, but Colonel Burr never 
called. It is proper here to remark, that Colonel Burr had been 
arrested a third time in the south, on the same charges, was brought 



112 MR. clay's professional career. 

to Richmond, Virginia, for trial, acquitted for want of evidence 
or defect of jurisdiction in the court; after which, he wandered 
some years in Europe, and returned to New York, to live unno- 
ticed, and die unlamented. It is manifest, that he deceived Mr. 
Clay. 

In the case of the commonwealth of Kentucky against Charles 
Wickliffe, for killing Mr. Benning, editor of the Kentucky Gazette, 
in Lexington, tried in 1829, Mr. Clay and the Hon. J. J. Crit- 
tenden were counsel for the defendant. The case arose from the 
following facts : Robert Wickliffe, Esq., the father of Charles, had 
been running for the legislature against John M. M'Calla, both of 
Lexington, during which time the latter had published in the Ga- 
zette an article defamatory of his opponent, over the signature of 
" Dentatus,'" which Charles proposed to resent for his father, but, 
being a minor by a few days, his father forbade it. As soon, how- 
ever, as he came to his majority, he called on the editor, Mr. Ben- 
ning, and demanded the author of '' Dentatus:' Mr. Benning 
asked time to consult the author, which was granted. M'Calla, 
naturally preferring that Benning should be exposed, rather than 
himself, told him, that he was not obliged to give up the author, 
that he might fall back on the privileges of an editor, and treat the 
demand with contempt. He advised Benning, however, to arm 
himself against the interview. Accordingly, when young Wick- 
liffe called, Benning declined giving the author, advised Wickliffe 
to be content, and endeavored to intimidate him by saying, that, 
if he knew the author, he would be the last man he would wish to 
see. Whereupon an altercation ensued, and Benning flourished 
his cane over the head of Wickliffe in a menacing manner, when 
the latter drew a pistol, and shot him. At this moment, Benning 
was darting into an adjoining room, as Wickliffe supposed, to 
seize a musket standing in the corner, which Wickliffe had seen. 
When some persons rushed in to interfere, Wickliffe was standing 
with another pistol in his hand, waiting for his opponent, and said : 
" Keep back. Let him come with his gun." But Benning had 
fallen from the first shot, and soon after died. 

The defence set up was excusable homicide. Mr. Crittenden 

preceded, adduced the law and precedents, and made an able and 

eloquent defence, which the intelligent spectators supposed had 

exhausted the argument, so as to leave nothing for Mr. Clay. To 

heir surprise, however, they saw Mr. Clay, when he rose, enter- 



MR. clay's professional CAREER. 113 

ing a new field. After a brief exordium, alluding to the facts, that 
it was a long time since he had been so engaged, and that nothing 
but the peculiar interest of the case, and his regard for the family 
of this unfortunate young man, would have induced him to appear 
on the occasion, he left behind him the entire field of argument, 
which had been so thoroughly explored by his colleague, and 
planted himself on the natural right of self-preservation — a right, 
he said, vested by the Creator in all animated being, on earth, in 
the air, in the waters — which was given to the first of our race, 
which all his posterity inherit, and which will abide to the last 
generation ; and as a consequence of this right, that, whenever a 
man had just cause to believe that his life was in jeopardy, he was 
justified in slaying his antagonist, though it should afterward ap- 
pear, that the danger was not real. 

It can not be denied, that imagination was set to work in an ar- 
gument of this kind ; but it was imagination hovering over the 
nucleus of a sound principle, and lighting on a foundation as firm 
as the base of the hills. It was tasking this faculty of the human 
mind, given for use, with one of its legitimate functions^-enticing 
and prompting it, in an appropriate exigency, to dive deeper than 
the organized forms of society, to rise higher, and to expatiate over 
a wider field, still keeping company with a principle, which every 
man finds in his own breast, as an ineradicable law of his being, 
and which he feels, knows to be right — that he may defend his oiim 
life against impending violence. 

There was another point, on which Mr. Clay touched before 
the jury, constituting rather an appeal, than an argument, which, it 
has been represented, was overwhelming in its effect. It will be 
seen, however, in view of the whole case, as made by the evidence, 
that it was not only legitimate, but natural, and extremely forcible. 
It was the 4th of July, the natal day of American freedom, when 
Mr. Clay made this defence, and when the case was delivered over 
to the jury. The main point, which Mr. Clay urged, as already 
seen, was the right of self-defence ; and it was made on the evi- 
dence. Here, then, according to the testimony, was a young man, 
who, most unfortunately, had killed an antagonist, to prevent being 
himself killed, which he supposed was the intention of his adver- 
sary, in his starting to seize a murderous weapon. This was pre- 
cisely the principle, on which the Declaration of American Inde- 
pendence was founded. From the 4th of July, 1776, this anni- 
versary had been a national, jubilee — the joyous occasion of patri- 



114 MB. clay's professional careee 

otic recollections — the day for every American to be glad in. The 
sun was bright, and everywhere, throughout the bounds of this 
happy Union, except in Lexington, a nation of freemen were cele 
brating the achievements of their forefathers, who rose in self-dv 
fence, not to killj but to assert a nation's rights, the rights of man. 
Here was a case : For asserting these rights, this young man was 
. court, a prisoner — a prisoner on this blessed day — surrounded 
hhd filled with the gloom of anxiety, his parents and friends anx- 
ious, all anxious, whether, on this birthday of a nation's freedom 
— freedom, acquired at the peril of the honor, the fortune, and the 
lives of a whole people — whether he, the prisoner at the bar, who 
had only done the same thing, for the same object, should have a 
verdict of acquittal from a jury of freemen ; whether he should go 
out, to smile and rejoice, under this smiling and rejoicing day, or 
whether he should be led, still a prisoner, and condemned, from 
this court to the jail, and from the jail to the penitentiary ? " In 
his veins, too, runs the blood of all the Howards." His mother 
was a Howard, one of the best families in Kentucky. 

The jury were absent but a few minutes, and by one o'clock 
young Wickliffe was free ! 

Mr. Clay spoke two hours and a half, and it has been repre- 
sented by those who heard him, that he rose above himself, went 
beyond himself, astonished the court, the jury, the audience, and 
filled all with amazement. 

Some of the graver passages of this effort of Mr. Clay, recited 
from memory to the author, by one who was present, and though 
doubtless imperfect, were certainly very striking, and not un- 
worthy of the distinguished advocate. It is to be regretted, that 
such a labor of genius, prompted by the best, and addressed to the 
best feelings, should have been for ever lost, except in its immedi- 
ate effect. One of the more humorous, sarcastic, ironical passa- 
ges, the author is tempted to give, represented as follows : " Who 
is this redoubtable ' Dentatus ? ' One would suppose, from the 
answer given to the just demand of my unfortunate client, that he 
were a Hercules in prowess, and a Caesar in valor. Who is ^ Den- 
tatus?^ " — the manner and intonations of Mr. Clay, in putting this 
question, first in one way, and then in another, with unutterable 
significance, are represented to have been withering, annihilating. 
" Dentatus" himself was present, but, before the answer came out 
— the pause was as terrible as the question — " Dentatus" had van- 
ished ! — " Who is ' Dentatus V Why, gentlemen of the jury" — 



MR. clay's PilGFESSIONAL CAREEE. 115 

here Mr. Clay drew himself down from his erect posture, till half 
bent, reducing himself to the smallest possible dimensions, looking 
like a dwarf, bringing his palms together, and with a voice as di- 
minutive as he himself seemed to be, coming out from lips planted 
n the focus of an indiscribably ironical countenance — " why, gen- 
tlemen, it is nobody but little Johnny M^Calla /" A gentleman of 
some prominence in Lexington, since that time a member of Con- 
gress, but then a youth, is represented to have said, that, during 
the pendency of this question, " Who is ' Dentatus ?' " recollect- 
ing, that he had written something against the father of young 
Wickliffe, begun to suspect himself, dodged behind another per- 
son, in fear of the eye and finger of Mr. Clay, and muttered to 
himself, " I am not ' Dentatus,' but, if he says so, I am a dead 
man." When, however, to his great relief, ^'■Little Johnny''^ 
dropped from the lips of Mr. Clay, he breathed freely again, was 
proud of his acquittal, rose and stretched his neck to see '■'■Little 
Johnny^* — for whom all other eyes were also searching — " heard 
the floor crack" where he had seen " Little Johnny" but a mo- 
ment before, and lo! " Little Johnny" was invisible ! 

Charles Wickliffe was killed in a duel, some time after his ac- 
quittal, by George L Trotter, who succeeded the unfortunate Ben- 
ning as editor of the Gazette, and Trotter has since been an inmate 
of the insane hospital ! 

It may be presumed, that it will not be thought necessary to 
multiply examples of practice in Mr. Clay's professional life, be- 
yond those already presented, to give an adequate idea of his skill 
and success in this career, or to establish his character as a jurist 
of the highest order. Having had in charge cases of almost every 
rariety, both in civil and criminal practice, it can not be said, that 
his talents as a man, and his acquirements in the law, have not 
been severely tested; and having managed all these with consum- 
mate ability, and unexampled success, it is a natural and rather 
unavoidable inference, that he would have managed any and all 
other cases equally well. It may be said of him, that he has filled 
up the measure, and ranged through the entire scope, of the re- 
quirements of the legal profession, with honor and success ; and 
that, too, while the greatest portion of his life has been consecrated 
to the affairs of state. The versatility of Mr. Clay's talents, and 
their power of adaptation to the exigences of his position, in all 
possible circumstances, will alone account for the fact, that he has 



116 MR. clay's professional career. 

never been found wanting in any demand made on his powers or 
attainments, in his professional or public life. The clearness and 
celerity of his thoughts, in scanning a subject of speculation, or 
exploring the field of an argument, enable him to dispense with 
much of that time and labor, which turbid and sluggish intellects 
are compelled to avail themselves of, and his creative genius fishes 
up from the deep, or draws in from remote regions, or brings down 
from above, all necessary aids to his purposes. Not lacking in- 
dustry, the perfect symmetry of his intellectual, moral, and physi- 
cal organization, well and equally developed in all its parts, and 
capable, from his constitutional vigor, of extraordinary exertions, 
on all occasions putting in requisition his great powers, has left 
him without a rival in the practical pursuits of life. 



MR. clay's wit. 117 



CHAPTER VI. 

MR. clay's wit and OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 

It is said, that the effect of wit is the unexpected discovery 
of a likeness in things unhke. Of course, wit itself is the faculty 
of making and presenting this discovery. The more unlike the 
subjects or things are, and the more forced and unnatural the re- 
semblance, so much greater is the wit and its effects. It can not 
be wit, unless the likeness and unlikeness are observed simulta- 
neously. It is a quick comparison of the two, which tickles the 
imagination, and produces the effect. Wit has an infinite variety 
of forms, and scarcely less numberless degrees of power : — at 
one time bursting the ribs with laughter, at another exciting less 
boisterous merriment, and sometimes producing only agreeable 
sensations. All sprightly and playful minds are more or less en- 
dowed with this faculty, and the general capability of appreciating 
it, supposes it is common to the race, though dormant in most 
minds, till roused by the more gifted to passive demonstrations. 
All can laugh, but it is not every one that can make others laugh. 
If wit commonly proves nothing in itself, it is yet a potent agent 
in quickening the mind to useful exercise. But in some cases, it 
proves much, and is not unfrequently the only and most effective 
mode of argument. The reasoning is not in its own display, but in 
the action of other minds excited by its promptings. It is at times 
conclusive, when the best reasoning would be all lost. It takes un- 
reasonable and perverse minds by surprise, without leaving a 
chance of resistance or escape. All see and feel, that it is a con- 
quest. 

The sallies of this description, which constitute one of the 
prominent traits of Mr. Clay's character, are not adduced here, 
as being all of that precise denomination, commonly called wit 
as above described. They result, however, from various applica- 
tions of the same faculty. Sometimes they assume the more 
grave character of sarcasm, irony, and satire ; at others, they ap- 



118 MR. clay's WIl 

pear in the form of withering rebuke, or annihilating severity. 
Mr. Clay's wit is chastened and refined, and pleases and delights, 
more often than it astonishes. In his speeches and conversation, 
it is always ready to be employed, when discretion dictates. It 
is sometimes captivating, dazzling ; at others, it mingles with the 
heavy artillery of argument, imparting to it a vividness and power 
irresistible. When sharpness or hard blows are not required, its 
illuminations, whether in debate or in the social circle, are almost 
constantly flashing out, like the sports of summer-evening light- 
ning, which brings no thunder or storm. Its attractions claim and 
secure attention, and are not less instructive, than charming. 

Tradition alleges, that Mr. Clay, in the early history of his 
professional career, was engaged for a client, who was extremely 
slow in paying his debts, and that a witness on the stand, who 
knew his habits, was hardly pressed by the opposite counsel, to 
answer on this point, so as to bring out the truth. Unwilling to 
injure his neighbor, more than was necessary, he said, " He is 
slow^ Still pressed to say more, he still answered, " He is slow'' 
— •' and sure,'''' said Mr. Clay, putting the words in his mouth. 
" Yes, sir," said the witness, taken by surprise. Of course, the 
witness could not afterward contradict himself, and Mr. Clay's 
client had the benefit of his evidence, according to the usual ac- 
ceptation of the terms, " slow and sure ;" though in fact, the man 
was sure not to pay. It was not quite fair, manifestly. But it 
may easily be conceived, that, to a mind like Mr. Clay's, the 
temptation was strong, for the mere sport of it, without intending 
unfairness, and that a moment's reflection would have repressed 
so mischievous a pun, in such circumstances. 

The culprit, Willis, whom Mr. Clay had defended successfully 
from the charge of murder, as narrated in another chapter, was 
far from being a good citizen afterward, and would get drunk. 
Mr. Clay happened to meet him in this condition one day, when 
Willis cried out, " Here comes Mr. Clay, who saved my life." — 
" Ah, Willis, poor fellow," said Mr. Clay, " I fear I have saved 
too many like you, who ought to be hanged." 

When Mr. Clay was a member of the Kentucky legislature, in 
1805, while advocating the removal of the seat of government, 
then and still at Frankfort, he made a ludicrous comparison of 
the geography of the place to an inverted hat, "the body of 
which," he said, " was Frankfort, nature's penitentiary. Who 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 119 

that got in, could get out ? And if any one would have a just 
idea of its miserable tenants, look at those persons in the gallery!" 
pointing in that direction, with a sweep of his hand, that took 
them all in. Every eye was instantly turned, as challenged, to 
behold as ragged and forlorn a set of poor fellows, as could be 
found in the darkest dens of a city, scampering off in the utmost 
consternation, to escape the notice, which had been thus turned 
upon them. The whole house burst into a laugh, and immedi- 
ately came to the conclusion, to scamper away from Frankfort, 
taking the seat of government with them. But, it would seem, 
they have never been able to get out of the hat. Nor could a 
lover of nature conceive why they should desire it. The sur- 
rounding heights, cut through by the beautiful river, Kentucky, 
are the just admiration of all strangers. Wit, however, is a dan- 
gerous weapon, and it was a long time before Mr. Clay himself 
could get out of the hat — not till, many years afterward, he had 
made a speech there, at a public dinner, put the hat right side up, 
and shown it was very beautiful. 

A year or two after this, he made his first speech in the senate 
of the United States, on internal improvement, which did not ex- 
actly suit a certain member, who, being much Mr. Clay's senior, 
thought he could prove his opponent guilty of the crime of being 
a young man, and with affected airs of superior wisdom, fell on 
him with that intent, advising him to modesty corresponding with 
his years. In Mr. Clay's reply, he was tempted to quote the fol- 
lowing lines : — 

" Thua have I seen a magpie in the street, 
A chattering bird we often meet, 
With head awry, and cunning eye, 
Peep knowingly into a marrow-bone." 

The application of the manners of this sagacious bird, to those 
of the reverend senator, was too forcibly just, not to be felt even 
by himself, and it was a long time before he was disposed to dis- 
play them again before the senate. Of course, he was wise 
enough afterward, to let the young man have his own way. 

In the spring of 1815, after the signing of the treaty of Ghent, 
Mr. Clay met the celebrated Madame de Stael in Paris, who told 
him, that she had been doing battle for the Americans in London, 
during the war. Mr. Clay replied, that "the Americans had 
heard of her good offices, and were not ungrateful for them." 
Madame de Stael also informed him, that the British, while the 

Vol. L— 7 



120 MR. clay's wit 

war was pending, talked of sending out the duke of Wellington 
to command their forces against the Americans. " I am very sor- 
ry, madam," said Mr. Clay, " that they did not send his grace." 
The lady, a little suprised, asked, " And why, sir?" — " Because, 
madam, if he had beaten us, we should only have been in the 
condition of all Europe, without disgrace. But, if we had been 
so fortunate as to beat the duke, we should have added greatly to 
the renown of our arms." The next time they met, w^as at Mad- 
ame de Stael's own house, when the duke was a guest. Like 
mischief-loving, privileged woman, after having made the duke and 
Mr. Clay acquainted, and on the instant, Madame de Stael re- 
hearsed to the duke the conversation above recited. The duke, 
looking alternately at Mr. Clay and Madame de Stael, and ad- 
dressing himself to both, as the occasion demanded, very gallantly 
said, " If I had been sent on that errand, and been so fortunate as 
to be successful against so gallant a foe as the Americans, I should 
have regarded it as the proudest feather in my cap." 

Not long after this, Mr. Clay was dining at Lord Castlereagh's, 
in London, with the other American commissioners of Ghent, the 
British commissioners, and some of the British ministers, when 
London was filled with rejoicings for the victory of Waterloo. 
Nothing was yet heard of the whereabout of Napoleon ; but it 
was suggested at table, that he might perhaps flee to America for 
an asylum. " Will he not give you some trouble, if he goes 
there?" said Lord Liverpool to Mr. Clay. "Not the least, my 
lord," said Mr. Clay. " We shall be very glad to see him, will 
entertain him with all due rites of hospitality, and soon make him 
a good democrat." 

Henry Goulbourn, Esq., one of the British commissioners at 
Ghent, sent to Mr. Clay, at Brussels, a London paper, containing 
the British official account of the capture of the city of Washing- 
ton, destruction of the capitol and other public buildings, with an 
apology for this disagreeable intelligence, presuming that the latest 
news from the United States would notwithstanding, be accepta- 
ble. Mr.Clay returned his compliments to Mr. Goulbourn, with a 
Paris paper, containing the first intelligence of the destruction of 
the British fleet on Lake Champlain, also apologizing for the disa- 
greeable part of the news, but presumed he would like the latest. 

After Mr. Clay's return from Ghent, a public dinner was given 
him by his fellow-citizens of Lexington, when, of course, "the 
negotiators of Ghent." were toasted, in whose behalf Mr. Clay 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES 121 

made a pertinent speech. But when the last toast was read — 
•' Our guest, Henry Clay — We welcome his return to that 
country, whose rights and interests he has so ably maintained, at 
home and abroad," his feelings were deeply affected, and he 
could but with difficulty make the following brief reply, which 
ends, as will be seen, with no vain attempt at playfulness : — 

" My friends, I must again thank you, for your kind and affec- 
tionate attention. My reception has been more like that of a 
brother, than a common friend or acquaintance, and I am utterly 
incapable of finding words to express my gratitude. My sit- 
uation is like that of a Swedish gentleman, at a dinner given in 
England by the Society of Friends of Foreigners in Distress. 
A toast having been given, complimentary to his country, it 
was expected, as is usual on such occasions, that he would rise 
and address the company. The gentleman, not understanding the 
English language, rose, under great embarrassment, and said, 
* Sir, I wish you to consider me a foreigner in distress.^ I wish 
vou, gentlemen, to consider me a friend in distress.''^ 

When the odious compemation hill was to be encountered, in 
the congressional canvass of 1816, Mr. Clay met an old, and 
once an ardent political friend, a Kentucky hunter, who expressed 
dissatisfaction at his vote on the abovenamed bill. " Have you a 
good rifle, my friend?" asked Mr. Clay. " Yes." — " Did it ever 
flash?" — "It did once." — "And did you throw it away?" — 
" No, I picked the flint, tried it again, and it was true." — " Have 
I ever flashed, except this once you complain of?" — " No." — 
" And will you throw me away?" — "No, no," said the hunter, 
with much emotion, grasping Mr. Clay's hand, " never, I will 
pick the flint, and try it again." Mr. Clay passed on, met anoth- 
er hunter with his rifle in hand, which he called " Old Bess," and 
solicited his vote. "Are you a good shot?" asked the hunter. 
Mr. Clay, supposing his friend spoke figuratively, promptly re- 
plied, " Try me, and see." — " Very well, here's Old Bess, try 
her once." Mr. Clay had never shot a rifle in his life. But 
there was no retreat. The mark was set up, the distance taken, 
and by mere chance, Mr. Clay made a hit in the centre. The 
hunter and his friends insisted on his trying once more, as that 
might be accident. " Beat that, and 1 will," said Mr. Clay, and 
they let him off as a good shot, and engaged to vote for him. 
These are instances of boldness, rather than of wit, showing 
promptitude, readiness, and decision. Nevertheless, there is al- 
ways an affinity between these vigilant and active faculties. They 



122 MR. clay's wit 

all answer to the common classification of a man's " wits.'*^ " He 
has his wits about him." 

In Mr. Clay's speech on the Seminole war, 1819, referring to 
General Jackson's execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister — the lat- 
ter especially — he said : " I know but little of military law, and 
what has happened, has certainly not created in me a taste for 
acquiring a knowledge of more." 

While Mr. Clay was advocating the recognition of South Amer- 
can independence, in 1818, and proposing the sending of a minis- 
ter to Buenos Ayres, which was then opposed, and voted down, 
he said : — 

" Yes, sir, from Constantinople, or from the Brazils ; from 
Turk, or Christian ; from black, or white ; from the dey of Al- 
giers, or the bey of Tunis ; from the devil himself, if he wore a 
crown, we should receive a minister ! But let a minister come 
from a poor republic, like that of La Plata, and we turn our back 
upon him ?" 

The startling effect of the dilemma, and its conclusiveness as a 
mode of reasoning, is well exemplified in the following instance. 
The opponents of the recognition of the independence of the 
South American states, proposed to confer that power on the 
president, and in their opposition to Mr. Clay's views for legisla- 
tive action, maintained, that recognition would be cause of war 
with Sjpain. Whereupon, Mr. Clay sprung the dilemma upon 
them : " The gentleman from Maryland, [Mr. Smith] and the 
gentleman from Virginia, [Mr. Smyth] the great champions of 
executive power, and the opponents of legislative authority, have 
contended, that recognition would be cause of war. These gen- 
tlemen are reduced to this dilemma : — if it is cause of war, the 
executive ought not to have the right to produce a war upon the 
country, without consulting Congress. If it is no cause of war, it 
is an act, which there is no danger in performing." The whole 
argument lay in this nutshell. 

When General Jackson went in, March 4, 1829, Mr. Adams, 
and of course Mr. Clay, who had been secretary of state, went 
OUT. On Mr. Clay's return to Kentucky, his friends at Union- 
town, Pennsylvania, saw him enter their borough, on the box, 
with the coachman. He bad chosen that seat, as the most easy, 
on account of the badness of the roads. " You see, my fi"iends," 
said Mr. Clay, as they drove up to the hotel, " I am one of the 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 123 

OUTS ; but I can assure you, that the ins behind me, have the 
worst of it." 

Mr. Clay, on one occasion, finding his pohtical opponents in 
Congress trying to forget an argument, which they had used, but 
too successfully, before the people, in a political campaign, reminded 
them of Dr. Franklin's newly-invented fable of Puss and the Eagle. 
The eagle, by mistake, had pounced on puss, instead of a pig, and 
soared away toward his lofty habitation with his prey. But puss 
stuck her claws into the eagle's body, and made a most uncom- 
fortable use of her teeth, till the eagle said to the supposed pig : 
" If you will let me go, I will let you go.'' — " No," said puss, 
*' not up here in the clouds. Put me down where you took me 
up, and it's a bargain." 

When Mr. Clay argued against the constitutionality of the 
United States bank, in 1811, he said to his opponents, who main- 
tained the doctrine of implied and incidental powers : "Like the 
Virginia justice, you tell the man, whose turkey has been stolen, 
that your books of precedent furnish no form for his case ; but that 
you will give him a precept to search for a cow, and when looking 
for a cow, he may possibly find his turkey." The point of this, 
as will be seen, Hes in the alleged position of the advocates of the 
bank, that they find a power in the constitution to create a fiscal 
agent of the government, and to accomplish this end, they propose 
a bank that shall support itself by its own proper functions. Thus, 
in looking for a cow, they find the turkey. This speech, of course, 
was brought to answer Mr. Clay, when he stood up as the advo- 
cate of a national bank, in 1816 ; and ever since it has been used 
against him. It was not a bad joke, that, in 1816, it was gravely 
read in the house, from beginning to end, as a reply to himself. 
It was certainly an able one. It is recorded of Patrick Henry, 
that, in his professional practice, by mistake, he made a powerful 
argument against his client, apparently sufficient to decide the case, 
till his client crept up in affright, and said to him: " Sir, you have 
ruined me." " Don't fear," said Mr. Henry ; " you will see what 
I am after." To the court and jury he then said : " Such is the 
argument of the opposite counsel." He had said more than they 
could say for themselves, and then went on to demolish it all, and 
gained his cause. It was somewhat so with Mr. Clay, in his argu- 
ments of 1811 and 1816, on the bank question. The first was the 
best that could be made, and the last demolished the first. 

The following specimen of rhetorical severity perpetrated on the 



124 MR. clay's wit 

federalists, in Mr. Clay's speech on the new army bill, 1813, 
including a notice of Mr. Jefferson's red French breeches, is worth 
reading : — 

" If gentlemen would only reserve for their own government, 
half the sensibility which is indulged for that of Great Britain, they 
would find much less to condemn. Restriction after restriction 
has been tried ; negotiation has been resorted to, until further nego- 
tiation would have been disgraceful. While these peaceful experi- 
ments are undergoing a trial, what is the conduct of the opposition ? 
They are the champions of war — the proud — the spirited — the 
sole repository of the nation's honor — the men of exclusive vigor 
and energy. The administration, on the contrary, is weak, feeble, 
and pusillanimous — ' incapable of being kicked into a war.' The 
maxim, ' not a cent for tribute, millions for defence,' is loudly pro- 
claimed. Is the administration for negotiation ? The opposition 
is tired, sick, disgusted with negotiation. They want to draw the 
sword, and avenge the nation's wrongs. When, however, foreign 
nations, perhaps emboldened by the very opposition here made, 
refuse to listen to the amicable appeals, which have been repeated 
and reiterated by the administration, to their justice and to their 
interest — when, in fact, war with one of them has become identi- 
fied with our independence and our sovereignty, and to abstain from 
it was no longer possible, behold the opposition veering round and 
becoming the friends of peace and commerce. They tell you of 
the calamities of war, its tragical events, the squandering away of 
your resources, the waste of the public treasure, and the spilling 
of innocent blood. ' Gorgons, hydras, and chimeras dire.' They 
tell you, that honor is an illusion ! Now, we see them exhibiting 
the terrific forms of the roaring king of the forest. Now, the 
meekness and humility of the lamb ! They are for war and no 
restrictions, when the administration is for peace. They are for 
peace and restrictions, when the administration is for war. You 
find them, sir, tacking with every gale, displaying the colors of 
every party, and of all nations, steady only in one unalterable pur- 
pose — to steer, if possible, into the haven of power. 

" During all this time, the parasites of opposition do not fail, by 
cunning sarcasm, or sly inuendo, to throw out the idea of French 
influence, which is known to be false, which ought to be met in 
one manner only, and that is by the lie direct. The administra- 
tion of this country devoted to foreign influence ! The adminis- 
tration of this country subservient to France ! Great God ! what 
a charge ! how is it so influenced ? By what ligament, on what 
basis, on what possible foundation does it rest ? Is it similarity of 
language ? No ! we speak different tongues, we speak the EngHsh 
language. On the resemblance of our laws ? No ! the sources 
of our jurisprudence spring from another and a different country. 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 125 

On commercial intercourse ? No ! we have comparatively none 
with France. Is it from the correspondence in the genius of 
the two governments ? No ! here alone is the liberty of man 
secure from the inexorable despotism, which, everywhere else, 
tramples it under foot. Where, then, is the ground of such an 
influence? But, sir, I am insulting you by arguing on such a 
subject. Yet, preposterous and ridiculous as the insinuation is, it 
is propagated with so much industry, that there are persons found 
foolish and credulous enough to believe it. You will, no doubt, 
think it incredible (but I have nevertheless been told it is a fact), 
that an honorable member of this house, now in my eye, recently 
lost his election by the circulation of a silly story in his district, 
that he was the first cousin of the emperor Napoleon. The proof 
of the charge rested on a statement of facts, which was undoubt- 
edly true. The gentleman in question, it was alleged, had mar- 
ried a connexion of the lady of the president of the United States, 
who was the intimate friend of Thomas Jefferson, late president 
of the United States, who some years ago, was in the habit of 
wearing red French breeches. Now, taking these premises as 
estabUshed, you, Mr. Chairman, are too good a logician not to see 

that the conclusion necessarily follows ! Really," said 

Mr. Clay, " gentlemen remind me of an obscure lady, in a city 
not very far off, who also took it into her head, in conversation 
with an accomplished French gentleman, to talk of the affairs of 
Europe. She, too, spoke of the destruction of the balance of 
power; stormed and raged about the insatiable ambition of the 
emperor ; called him the curse of mankind, the destroyer of Eu- 
rope. The Frenchman listened to her with perfect patience, and 
when she had ceased, said to her, with ineffable politeness, ' Mad- 
ame, it would give my master, the emperor, infinite pain, if he 
knew how hardly you thought of him.' " 

One of Mr. Clay's colleagues, in 1816, attempted wit in the 
house of representatives at the expense of Mr. Clay. Mr. Clay 
retorted in the following terms : " Motives of delicacy, which the 
committee would be able to understand and appreciate, prevent- 
ed him [Mr. Clay] from noticing some of his colleague's remarks ; 
but he would take this occasion to give him one admonition — that, 
when he next favored the house with an exhibition of his talents 
for wit, with a display of those eloquent implements, for his pos- 
session of which the gentleman from Virginia had so handsomely 
complimented him, he would recollect that it is bought, and not 
horroived wit, which the adage recommends as best." This was 
a two-edged sword, doing equal execution on the gentleman from 
Virginia, who had not discovered the horroived wares which had 
so much delighted him. 



126 MR. clay's wit 

Mr. Madison, going out of office in 1817, vetoed, the day be- 
fore his retirement, an internal improvement bill, on the ground of 
unconstitutionality, notwithstanding he had, in his annual message 
at the opening of that session of Congress, earnestly recommended 
such a measure, and that too on an extended scale ; and Mr. 
Monroe, stepping into his shoes the next day, was supposed to 
have suddenly altered his inaugural address, from a conformity 
with Mr. Madison's annual message, to a conformity with his 
veto, by introducing the words " proceeding always with a consti- 
tutional sanction ;^^ and in his first message, he declared his opin- 
ion against the constitutional power. The Hon. Mr. Nelson, of 
Virginia was suspected, not altogether without grounds, to have 
trimmed somewhat skilfully to these veerings of the two chief 
magistrates. As Mr. Clay was compelled conscientiously to en- 
counter these executive movements, so hostile to one great branch 
of his system of domestic policy, Mr. Nelson, in anticipation of a 
notice of his own course, had gratuitously " denied the operation 
of executive influence on his mind, or that, from that quarter, he 
had anything to expect, to hope, or to fear." 

" I did not," said Mr. Clay, " impute to my honorable friend 
any such motive. I knew his independence of mind and charac- 
ter too well to do so. But I entreat him to reflect, if he does not 
expose himself to such an imputation by those less friendly 
toward him than myself. Let us look a little at facts. The pres- 
ident recommends the establishment of a bank. If ever there was 
a stretch of implied powers conveyed by the constitution, it has 
been thought, that the grant of the charter of a national bank was 
one. But the president recommends it. Where was then my 
honorable friend, the friend of state-rights, who so pathetically 
calls upon us to repent, in sackcloth and ashes, our meditated 
violation of the constitution, and who kindly expresses the hope, 
that we shall be made to feel the public indignation ? Where 
was he at that awful epoch ? Where was that eloquent tongue, 
which we have now heard with so much pleasure ? Silent ! Si- 
lent as the grave ! [Mr. Nelson said, across the house, that he 
had voted against the bank bill vihenjirst recommended.] Alas ! 
my honorable friend had not the heart to withstand a second recom- 
mendation from the president ; but when it came, yielded, no doubt 
most reluctantly, to the executive wishes, and voted for the bank. 
At the last session of Congress, Mr. Madison recommended an 
exercise of all the existing powers of the general government, to 
establish a comprehe7isive system of internal improvement. Where 
was my honorable friend on that occasion ? Not silent as the 
grave, but he gave a negative vote, almost as silent. No effort was 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 127 

made on his part, great as he is, when he exerts the poweis of his 
well-stored mind, to save the commonwealth from that greatest of 
all calamities, a system of internal improvement. No ; although 
a war with all the allies, he now thinks, would be less terrible 
than the adoption of this report, not one word then dropped from 
his lips against the measure. [Mr. Nelson said, he voted against 
the bill.] That he whis'^ered. out an unwilling negative, I do not 
deny ; but it was unsustained by that torrent of eloquence which 
he has poured out on the present occasion. Now^ my honorable 
friend rouses, thunders forth the danger in which the constitution 
is, and sounds the tocsin of alarm." 

It would be necessary for one to have a full view of all that was 
before the committee on this occasion, of all that was referred to 
by Mr. Clay's remarks, of the character and powers of Mr. Nel- 
son, so smoothly and murderously complimented, and of his foam- 
ing, vaulting, salient, but newborn zeal, fully to appreciate the wit, 
the sarcasm, the severity of this notice. 

At another time while pleading the cause of South America, in 
1818, Mr. Clay had occasion to notice Mr. Nelson as follows : — 

" Even my honorable friend near me, has made a speech on our 
side ; and we should not have found out, if he had not told 
us, that he would vote against us. Although his speech has been 
distinguished by his accustomed eloquence, I should be glad to 
agree on a cartel with the gentlemen on the other side of the 
house to give them his speech for his vote. The gentleman says 
his heart is with us — that he ardently desires the independence of 
the south. Will he excuse me for telling him, that if he will 
give himself up to the honest feelings of his heart, he will have a 
much surer guide, than by trusting to his head — to which, how- 
ever, I am far from offering any disparagement." 

It is remarkable, notwithstanding President Monroe had come 
out in his message against internal improvement, that, on his tour 
to the north the next summer, he, of his sole magisterial will, set 
the military to work on the road from Plattsburg to the St. Law- 
rence, without authority of law. First, according to the doctrine 
he had taken his stand upon, it was an invasion of state-rights ; 
next, by the same creed, there was no express authority in the 
constitution ; but the worst of it was, expenses were incurred 
without authority of law. It was not enough to say, that the pres- 
ident had a right to employ the troops under his command. 
These facts were nuts to Mr. Clay. He did not find fault with 
what the president had done. On the contrary, he commended 



128 



MR. CLAV S WIT 



it ; and the torrent of wit and argument he poured forth, in re- 
ferring to it, was a treat. *' If," said he, " the president has 
power to cause those public improvements to be executed at his 
pleasure, whence is it derived ? If any member will stand up in 
his place, and say, that the President is clothed with this author- 
ity, and that it is denied to Congress, let us hear from him ; and 
let him point to the clause in the constitution, which vests it in 
the executive, and withholds it from the legislative branch." 

Mr. Smith, of Maryland, had contended in reply to Mr. Clay, 
that the recognition of the independence of the South American 
states, was cause of war. Mr. Smith was a commercial gentle- 
man, and neither his knowledge, nor his experience, qualified him 
to attempt an argument of this kind. Such presumption may at 
least be some apology for the following severe notice by Mr. 
Clay : " I recommend, without intending any disrespect, that the 
honorable gentleman should confine himself to the operations of 
commerce, rather than undertake to expound questions of public 
law ; for I can assure the gentleman, that, although he may make 
some figure, with his practical knowledge in one case, he will not 
in the other." But, on another occasion, Mr. Clay seems to have 
been touched with great commiseration for injustice done to this 
same gentleman (Mr. Smith). " The honorable gentleman stated, 
that he had been accused of partiality for the manufacturing inter- 
est. Never was there a more groundless and malicious charge 
preferred against a calumniated man. Since this question has been 
agitated in the public councils, although I have often heard from 
him ^professions of attachment to this branch of industry, I have 
never known any member a more uniform, determined, and un- 
compromising opponent of it, than the honorable gentleman has 
uniformly been. And if, hereafter, the calumny should be repeat- 
ed, of his friendship to the American system, I shall be ready to 
furnish to him, in the most solemn manner, my testimony of his 
innocence." 

Mr. Smyth, of Virginia — the notorious General Smyth, of 
the war of 1812 — who made such a figure by his proclamation, 
calling for volunteers for the invasion of Canada, and who at last 
showed the white feather to the foe, said in the house, that the 
recognition of the independence of the South American states, by 
Congress, was ^^ usurpation P'' — " Sir," said Mr. Clay, "the gen- 
tleman has mistaken his position here. He is a 7nilitary chief- 
tain, and is an admirable defender of executive authority ; but he 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 129 

has yet to learn his horn-hook as to the power of this branch of the 
government." 

General Smyth was remarkable for long, prosy, interminable 
speeches, in the house of representatives. On one occasion, in 
committee of the whole, after having wearied the patience of the 
members more than usual, he said to Mr. Clay, who sat near him, 
in a low voice, while he was pausing for a new start : " You 
speak for the present generation. I speak for posterity." — " Yes," 
replied Mr. Clay, " and you seem resolved to continue speaking, 
till your audience arrives." 

When the resolution to disapprove of General Jackson's execu- 
tion of Ambrister and Arbuthnot, was under debate in the house, 
General Smyth opposed it, and announced his purpose to offer 
an amendment or substitute, to approve. This was exactly the 
thing desired by the advocates of the pending resolution, know- 
ing well that to approve would be impossible, and thus their ob- 
ject would be gained ; while the resolution, as it stood, might 
fail, as it did. While, therefore, one part of the house connived 
at the general's proposal, the other part intimated to him that he 
must retreat, or be lost. He therefore retreated. It was cruel in Mr. 
Clay not to let hira escape. But he could not help saying : " He 
admired the achievement, but it was not the first time the general 
had shown his skill in retreating.''^ — It was a terrible blow. The 
house roared with laughter, and as soon fell back to pity. Mr. 
Clay had no apprehension of an affair of honor with the " procla- 
mation general." He, therefore, wrote him a note of apology the 
next morning. 

Under Mr. Monroe's administration, it was made apparent, by 
executive communications to Congress, that some very improper 
efforts were in progress, by the Russian government, in behalf of 
Spain, affecting the relations of the United States to the new states 
of South America. Mr. Clay, who was the first, and a long time 
the sole champion of South American freedom, said : — 

" He must enter his solemn protest against this and every 
other species of foreign interference in our matters with Spain. 
What have they to do with them ? Would they not repel, as 
officious and insulting intrusion, any interference on our part, in 
their concerns with foreign states ? — Would his imperial majesty 
have listened with complacency, to our remonstrances against the 
vast acquisitions he has recently made ? He has lately crammed 
his enormous maw with Finland, and with the spoils of Poland, and 
while the difficult process of digestion is going on, he throws nim- 



130 MR. clay's wit 

self upon a couch, and cries out, ' Don't, don't disturb my repose !' 
He charges his minister here to plead the cause of peace and 
concord ! ' The American government is too enlightened' (ah ! sir, 
how sweet this unction is, that is poured down our backs !) ' to 
take such hasty steps !' and his imperial majesty's minister here is re- 
quired ' to engage the American government,' &c. ' Nevertheless, 
the emperor does not interpose in this discussion !' No ! not he I 
He makes, above all, ' no pretension to exercise influence in the 
councils of a foreign power' — Not the slightest. . . If Count Nes- 
selrode had never written another paragraph, the extract from his 
despatch to Mr. Politica, which has been transmitted to this 
house, will demonstrate that he merited the confidence of his mas- 
ter." 

It was rumored, that even the "enormous maw" of his imperial 
majesty, was insufficient to take in this wholesome repast of the 
American statesman's raillery. It had at least the effect of putting 
an end to such interference. 

In the vote of the house of representatives, on the tariff of 1824, 
it was expected that Mr. Foot, of Connecticut, and Mr. Foote^ 
of New York, would both support it ; but they voted against it. 
After the bill had passed, and as Mr. Clay came down from the 
Speaker's chair, at the time of adjournment, a friend said to him, 
" We have done pretty well to day." — "Yes," said Mr. Clay, " we 
made a good stand, considering we lost both our Feet." 

Mr. Clay had been accused by General Jackson and his friends 
of appealing to the public, to defend himself against the public 
charge of bargain in the election of Mr. Adams — of forcing and 
dragging those matters out. Of course, every one will see, that 
it was a subject, which he could have had no motive in starting ; 
and about which he could not be silent, when others had started 
it, and seemed resolved to make the most of it. In a speech at 
Cincinnati, 1828, Mr. Clay said : — 

" My traducers have attributed to me great facility in making a 
bargain. Whether I possess it, or not, there is one ^ bargain, 
which, for their accommodation, I am willing to enter into with 
them. If they will prevail upon their chief, to acknowledge that 
he has been in error, and has done me injustice, and if they will 
cease to traduce and abuse me, I will no longer present myself 
before public assemblies, or in public prints, in my own defence. 
That is a bargain, however, which I have no expectation of being 
able to conclude ; for men, who are in a long-established line of 
business, will not voluntarily quit their accustomed trade, and ac- 
knowledge themselves bankrupts to honor, decency, and truth." 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 131 

Considering that Mr. Clay was secretary of state, under " tho 
late American administration" alluded to in the following extract 
from his speech of 1832, on the nomination of Mr. Van Buren to 
the court of London, it will doubtless be regarded as some apol- 
ogy for its severity : — 

" Now, sir, keeping in sight of the object which the late secretary 
of state had in view — the opening of the trade with the British 
colonies — which was the best mode to accomplish it? — To send 
our minister to prostrate himself as a suppliant before the British 
throne, and to say to the British king, we have offended your ma- 
jesty; the late American administration brought forward preten- 
sions which we can not sustain, and they too long and too tena- 
ciously adhered to them ; your majesty was always in the right ; 
but we hope your majesty will be graciously pleased to recollect, 
that it was not we who are now in possession of the American 
government, but those who have been expelled from it, that 
wronged your majesty ; and that we, when out of power, were on 
the side of your majesty ; and we do humbly pray, that your ma- 
jesty, taking all mitigating circumstances into consideration, will 
graciously condescend to extend to us the privileges of the British 
act of Parliament of ] 825, and to grant us the boon of a trade 
with your majesty's West India colonies? Or, to have presented 
himself before the British monarch, in the manly and dignified at- 
titude of a minister of this republic, and abstaining from all con- 
demnation or animadversion upon the past conduct of his own 
government, to have placed the withdrawal of our former demand 
upon the ground of concession, in a spirit of amity and com- 
promise?' 

Mr. Clay was dining with the vice-president, Mr. Van Buren, 
during the second term of President Jackson, when it was prob- 
able, that the vice-president would succeed. The company con- 
sisted of Mr. Forsyth, secretary of state, Mr. Rives, of Virginia, 
foreign ministers, judges of the supreme court, and others. The 
conversation turned upon the topic of the favorable or unfavorable 
dispositions of the French and English ministries toward Ameri- 
can interests. Several of the gentlemen having been abroad, it 
was agreed between all of them, that American interests fared best 
with tory ministers in England and France. Mr. Clay, addressing 
himself to Mr. Van Buren, said " he would propose a toast, with 
his permission." — " Certainly, we will receive it with pleasure." 
"I propose," said Mr. Clay, "tory ministers for England and 
France, and a whig ministry for the United States." 

" What is that?" said Mr. Clay to Mr. Adams (J. Q.), pointing 



132 MR. clay's wit 

to a large dish on the dinner-table of the latter gentleman, as the 
covers were removed. — "A codfish, from my constituents of Mar- 
blehead," said Mr. Adams ; " shall I send you a bit of it ?" — " Not 
the least bit of it," said Mr. Clay ; "the bones would stick in my 
throat like a Mississippi snag." There are few who will no 
remember the reputed controversy between those two gentlemen 
at Ghent, in 1814, about the fisheries and the navigation of the 
Mississippi. 

The South-Carolinians once had public meetings, and passed 
resolutions not to trade with the Kentucky drovers any more, on 
account of their attachment to the tariff. In 1832, when Mr. Cal- 
houn was vice-president, and president of the senate, Mr. Clay, in 
reference to these resolutions, said : — 

" They [the South-Carolinians] must have supposed us as stu- 
pid as the sires of one of the descriptions of the stock [mules] of 
which that trade consisted, if they imagined that their resolutions 
would affect our principles. Our drovers cracked their whips, 
blew their horns, and passed the Seleuda gap [the same old 
route] to other markets, where better humors existed, and equal or 
greater profits were made. I have heard of your successor in the 
other house, Mr. President, this anecdote: that he joined in the 
adoption of those resolutions ; but when, about Christmas, he ap- 
plied to one of his South Carolina neighbors to purchase the reg- 
ular supply of pork for the ensuing year, he found that he had to 
pay two prices for it, and he declared, if that were the patriotism 
on which the resolutions were based, he would not conform to 
them." 

Mr. Clay, in one of his speeches, gives the following sketch of 
office-seekers, on the advent of Andrew Jackson to power: — 

"Recall to your recollection the 4th of March, 1829, when the 
lank, lean, famished forms, from fen and forest, and the four quar- 
ters of the Union, gathered together in the halls of patronage, or 
stealing by evening's twilight into the apartment of the president's 
mansion, cried out with ghastly faces, and in sepulchral tones, 
*Give us bread! give us treasury-pap! give us our reward!' 
England's bard was mistaken. Ghosts will sometimes come, 
called or uncalled." 

On Mr. Benton's proposal to give away the " refuse lands" of 
the public domain, Mr. Clay said: — 

" The senator from Missouri was chanting most sweetly to the 
tune, ' refuse lands,' ' refuse lands,' ' refuse lands,' on his side of 
the Mississippi, and the soft strains of his music, having caught 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 133 

the ear of his excellency, on the Illinois side, he [the governor of 
Illinois] joined in chorus, and struck an octave higher. The sen- 
ator from Missouri wished only to pick up some crumbs which fell 
from Uncle Sam's table ; but the governor resolved to grasp the 
whole loaf. The senator modestly claimed only an old, smoked, 
rejected joint; but the stomach of his excellency yearned after Hhe 
whole hog.'' The governor peeped over the Mississippi into Mis- 
souri, and saw the senator leisurely roaming in some rich pasture, 
on bits of 'refuse lands.' He returned to Illinois, and springing 
into the grand prairie, determined to claim and occupy it, in all its 
boundless extent." 

When President Jackson had resolved on assuming the respon- 
sibility, in removing the public deposites, he read a paper to his 
cabinet, not to consult them, but declaratory of his purpose. 
That part, which was more especially addressed to the ear of Mr. 
Duane, secretary of the treasury, was what Mr. Clay called, 
"coaxing." It reads thus: "He [the president] trusts the secre- 
tary of the treasury will see only the frank and respectful declara- 
tions, &c., and not a spirit of dictation, which the president would 
be as careful to avoid, as ready to resist," &c. : — 

" Sir," said Mr. Clay, " how kind! how gentle ! It reminds me 
of an historical anecdote, related of one of the most remarkable 
characters, which our species has ever produced. While Oliver 
Cromwell was contending for the mastery of Great Britain, he be- 
sieged a catholic town. The place made a stout resistance ; but 
at length the town being likely to be taken, the poor catholics pro- 
posed terms of capitulation, stipulating therein for the toleration 
of their religion. The paper, containing the terms, was brought 
to Oliver, who, putting on his spectacles to read it, cried out, 
*Oh, granted, granted, certainly.' He added, however, 'but, if 
one of them shall dare to be found attending mass, he shall be 
hanged.' " The fate of Mr. Duane, for disregarding the " coax- 
ing," was decapitation. 

When Mr. Clay, while speaking on the removal of the depos- 
ites, came to the fact of General Jackson's having been obliged to 
send out an agent to find honest sub-treasurers, if he could, for the 
keeping of the public funds, he suddenly put in a parenthesis in 
these five words {and then such an agent), without deigning to 
8ay more as to the suitableness of the appointment, or the qualifi- 
cations of the appointee. A gentleman, who heard it, says, that 
the manner of Mr. Clay, in his change of voice, in his look, his 
emphasis, and the tout ensemble of what addressed the eye, the 



134: MR. clay's WIT 

ear, and the imagination, was infinitely amusing. This agent was 
afterward postmaster-general. 

Mr. Taney was attorney-general under President Jackson, in 
1833, when Mr. Duane, secretary of the treasury, was removed 
from office, for not feeling it right to do the bidding of the presi- 
dent in removing the deposites; and Mr. Taney was put in his 
place, to do that work. At the next session of Congress, Mr. 
Clay said : — 

" We have, Mr. President, a most wonderful financier at the 
head of our treasury department. He sits quietly by in the cabi- 
net, and witnesses the contest between his colleague and the presi- 
dent ; sees the conflict in the mind of that colleague, between his 
personal attachment to the president, on the one hand, and his sol- 
emn duty to the public, on the other; beholds the triumph of con- 
scientious obligation ; contemplates the noble spectacle of an 
HONEST MAN, preparing to surrender an exalted office, with all 
its honors and emoluments, rather than betray the interests of the 
people ; witnesses the contemptuous and insulting expulsion of that 
colleague from office ; and then coolly enters the vacated 'places 
without the slightest sympathy or the smallest emotion /" 

In the annual report of the secretary of the treasury (Mr. Taney^, 
he spoke of the press, as having been corrupted by the bank. 
Mr. Clay, in one of his speeches on the removal of the deposites, 
Dec. 30, 1833, said: — 

"If the secretary wishes to purify \he jpress, he has a most Her- 
culean duty before him. And when he sallies out on his Quix- 
otic expedition, he had better begin with the Augean stable, the 
press nearest to him, his organ [the Globe], as most needing puri- 
fication." 

" Sir, the truth is, that the re-election of the president [Jack- 
son] proves as little an approbation by the people of all the opin- 
ions he holds, as it would prove that, if the president had a car- 
buncle or the king's evil, they meant, by re-electing him, to ap- 
prove of his carbuncle." 

" When the secretary [Mr. Taney] treats of the power of the 
president, he puts on corsets, and prostrates himself before the 
executive, in the most graceful, courteous, and ladylike manner; 
but when he treats of that of Congress, and of the treasurer, he 
swells and expands himself, and flirts about, with all the airs of 
high authority." 

" One of the pleasures which I promised myself," said Mr. 
Clay, in his speech at Nashville, 1840, " in making this visit to 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 135 

your beautiful town, was to meet ray honorable friend, Felix 
Grundy, and talk over matters with him. But, on my inquiry for 
him, I learned that he was in East Tennessee, making speeches in 
favor of the present administration. Ah ! said I, at his old occu- 
pation, defending criminals ! But there is this difference between 
my distinguished friend's present and past defence of criminals : 
He is now defending state criminals, not before a carefully packed 
jury, but before a free, enlightened, virtuous, and patriotic peo- 
ple ; and, therefore, we may well hope, that his present efforts 
will not be attended with his hitherto usual success." 

When Mr. Clay spoke, at Nashville, of General Harrison, as 
a soldier, and of his battles, some one from the crowd, cried out, 
" Tell us of Van Buren's battles !"— " Ah !" said Mr. Clay, " I 
shall have to use my colleague's language [Mr. Crittenden's], and 
tell you of Mr. Van Buren's three great battles ! He [Mr. Crit- 
tenden] says, that he fought General Commerce, and conquered 
him; that he fought General Currency, and conquered him; and 
that, with his Cuba allies [the bloodhounds], he fought the Semi- 
noles, and^oZ conquered!" 

" The complaint is, that they [the public lands] are not sold 
fast enough, in other words, that people do not multiply rapidly 
enough to buy them. Patience, gentlemen of the land commit- 
tee, patience ! If you will only acquiesce in the certain and quiet 
operation of the laws of God and man, the wilderness will quickly 
teem with people, and be filled with the monuments of civilization." 

Mr. Lincoln, of Maine, in support of a pension-bill before the 
house of representatives, broke out in a rhapsodical apostrophe — 
indicative certainly of good feeling — and said : " Soldiers of the 
revolution! live for ever!" Mr. Clay, not less zealous in so 
good a cause, could not, however, resist the temptation to say : 
" I hope my worthy friend will consent to a compromise of ^for 
ever,'' to nine hundred and ninety-nine years." 

" If, as I think, fatally for the public interest, the bill [tariff of 
1820] shall be defeated, what will be the character of the account 
which we shall have to render to our constituents upon our return 
among them ? We shall be asked, 'what have you done to reme- 
dy the disorders of the public currency V 'Why, Mr. Secretary 
of the Treasury made us a long report on that matter, containing 
much valuable information, and some very good reasoning, but, 
upon the whole, we found that subject rather above our compre- 
hension, and we concluded that it was wisest to let it regulate 
itself.' ' What have you done to supply the deficit in the treasury?' 

Vol. L— 8 



136 MR. clay's wit 

'We thought that, ahhough you are all endeavoring to get out of 
the banks, it was a very good time for us to go into them, and we 
have authorized a loan.' * You have done something then, certain- 
ly, on the subject of retrenchment. Here, at home, we are prac- 
tising the greatest economy, and our daughters, no longer able to 
wear calico gowns, are obliged to put on homespun.' 'Why, we 
have saved, by the indefatigable exertions of a member from Ten- 
nessee (General Cocke), fifty thousand dollars, which were wanted 
for the Yellow Stone expedition. No, not quite so much ; for 
thirty thousand dollars of that sum were still wanted, although we 
stopped the expedition at the Council Bluffs. And we have 
saved another sum, which we hope will give you great satisfac- 
tion. After nearly two days' debate, and a division between the 
two houses, we struck off two hundred dollars from the salary of 
the clerk of the attorney-general.' 'What have you done to pro- 
tect home industry from the effects of the contracted policy of 
foreign powers?' 'We thought it best, after much deliberation, to 
leave things alone at home, and to continue our encouragement 
to foreign industry.' 'Well, surely you have passed some law to 
reanimate and revive the hopes of the numerous bankrupts that 
have been made by the extraordinary circumstances of the world, 
and the ruinous tendency of our policy?' 'No; the senate could 
not agree on that subject, and the bankrupt-bill failed.' " 

In 1834, when the dominant party were in great perplexity, 
Mr. Clay, in the senate, incidentally remarked, that " he verily 
believed they do not know what to do. They are afraid to stay, 
and afraid to return [adjourn] ; afraid of Jackson, if they remain, 
and of their constituents if they go home. Already," he said, 
" the whole party was crumbling away ; sinking, like the banks 
of the Mississippi undermined by the torrent, whole acres at a 
time. Why," said Mr. Clay, " I am told that the whole regen- 
cy of New York, taking the alarm, has fled from Albany, and 
sought refuge in this city. Whether they would or would not be 
remanded by Governor Marcy, under the laws in such cases made 
and provided, he could not say ; but, if they remained, he hoped 
they would be allowed the benefit of all the rites of hospitality 
due to such distinguished strangers. For himself, he condoled 
with the gentlemen, in this the trying time of their misfortunes, 
and trusted that they would be able to bear them with manly for- 
titude and Christian resignation." The editors of the National 
Intelligencer remark upon this : "If any one who heard this part 
of Mr. Clay's speech, were able to look grave upon it, thank 
Heaven, it was not we " 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 137 

Mr. Clay describes the expunging resolution thus : — 
" It runs, whereas, and whereas, and whereas, and whereas, and 
so forth, into a formidable array of nine several whereases. One 
who should have the courage to begin to read them, unav^^are of 
what was to be their termination, would think, that, at the end of 
such a tremendous display, he must find the very d — 1. It is 
like a kite, or a comet, except that the order of nature is inverted, 
and the tail, instead of being behind, is before the body, to which 
it is appended." 

Notwithstanding Mr. Clay has been accused of a political 
BARGAIN, he could never have much patience with that kind of 
traffic in others. The following is an extract from his speech of 
September 25, 1837, on the subtreasury-bill, and has respect to 
George M. Dallas, who was elected vice-president in 1844 : — 

" The memorial of the late bank of the United States, praying 
for a recharter, was placed in his hands, and he presented it to 
the senate. He carried the recharter through the senate. The 
veto came ; and in two or three weeks afterward, we behold the 
same senator at the head of an assembly of the people, in the 
statehouse-yard, in Philadelphia, applauding the veto, and con- 
demning the bank — condemning his own act ! Motives lie beyond 
the reach of the human eye, and it does not belong to me to say, 
what they were, which prompted this self-castigation, and this 
praise of the destruction of his own work ; but it is impossible to 
overlook the fact, that this same senator, in due time, received 
from the author of the veto, the gift of a splendid foreign mission !" 
— to the court of St. Petersburg. 

Mr. Van Buren said, in his first annual message, that the bank- 
question had been *' tvdce and unequivocally" decided by the peo- 
ple, referring to the presidential elections of 1832 and 1836. 
Mr. Clay said : — 

" It is somewhat ungrateful to the people of the United States, 
to suppose, that the particular opinion of Mr. Van Buren, in re- 
gard to a United States bank, constituted any, much less the chief 
recommendation of him to their suffrages. It would be more 
honorable to him and to them, to suppose, that it proceeded from 
his eminent abilities, and his distinguished services, at home and 
abroad ! If we are to look beyond them, and beyond him, many 
believe, that the most influential cause of his election, was the en- 
dorsement of that illustrious predecessor, in whose footsteps he 
stood pledged to follow." 

On another occasion, Mr. Clay, in the preliminaries of a 
speech, incidental thereunto, remarked :— 



138 MR. clay's wit 

i will now content myself with saying, that, on the fourth 
day of March, 1S29, Andrew Jackson — not by the blessing of 
GoJ — was made president of these United States." Again • 
*' Mr. Van Buren announces [in accepting his nomination of 
1835], that he was the honored instrument, selected by the 
friends of the present administration, to carry out its principles 
and policy. 'Honored instrument P ^^ said Mr. Clay. "That 
word, according to the most approved definition, means tooL 
He was, then, the honored tool !" 

" He [Mr. Van Buren] is too good a democrat, and the whole 
tenor of his life shows, that, whatever other divorces he may 
recommend, the last that he would desire, would be one between 
him and the people." 

Mr. Clay, speaking of the convenience of a national paper me- 
dium, said, "he did not doubt, that his honorable friend [Mr. 
Grundy, who had denounced paper money] furnished himself with 
United States bank-notes, to travel from Nashville to Washington." 
" No, sir," said Mr. Grundy, "1 always travel on s^fecie.'^ — "Ah!" 
rephed Mr. Clay, "my old friend is always specie-ous^^ — a quahty 
for which, in fact, he was very notorious. This being known, and 
the peculiar and ludicrous significancy, which Mr. Clay gave to 
the utterance of the word, by his manner and tone, excited no little 
merriment. 

" Who, Mr. President," said Mr. Clay, " are the most conspic- 
uous of those who perseveringly pressed this bill [the sub-treasury 
bill] upon Congress and the American people? Its drawer is the 
distinguished gentleman in the White-House, not far off. Its en- 
dorser is the distinguished senator from South Carolina, here 
present. What the drawer thinks of the endorser, his cautious 
reserve and stifled enmity prevent us from knowing. But the 
frankness of the endorser has not left us in the same ignorance of 
his opinion of the drawer. He has often expressed it, upon the 
floor of the senate. On an occasion, not very distant, denying to 
him any of the nobler qualities of the royal beast of the forest, he 
attributed to him those, which belong to the most crafty, most 
skulking, and one of the meanest, of the quadruped tribe." It 
was Mr. Calhoun, who fixed on Mr. Van Buren, on the occasion 
here alluded to, the name of " the fox." 

In recognition of the former amity and good fellowship between 
himself and Mr. Calhoun, Mr. Clay says : — 

" We united, if, indeed, there were any alliance in the case, to 
restrain the enormous expansion of executive power; to arrest the 
progress of corruption ; to rebuke usurpation ; to drive the Goths 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 139 

and Vandals from the capitol ; to expel Brennus and his horde 
from Rome, who, when he threw his sword into the scale, to aug- 
ment the ransom demanded from the mistress of the world, showed 
his preference for gold — that he was a hard-money chieftain. It 
was by the much more valuable metal of iron, that he was driven 
from her gates." 

Again, speaking of the disruption : — 

" The arduous contest in which we were so long engaged, was 
about to terminate in a glorious victory. At this critical juncture, 
the senator left us. He left us for the very purpose of preventing 
the success of the common cause. He took up his musket, knap- 
sack, and shotpouch, and joined the other party. He went, horse, 
foot, and dragoon, and he himself composed the whole corps. He 
went, as his present most distinguished ally commenced with his 
expunging resolution, ' solitary and alone.^ " 

Again, referring to the speech of Mr. Calhoun on the sub- 
treasury : — 

" It was plausible, ingenious, abstract, metaphysical, and general- 
izing. It did not appear to me to be adapted to the bosoms and 
business of men. It was aerial, and not very high up in the air, Mr. 
President, either — not quite as high up as Mr. Clayton was in his 
last ascension, in his balloon." 

There was a good deal of warmth between Mr. Clay and Mr 
Calhoun in 1840, while the land bill of the latter was under debate. 
Mr. Calhoun alluded to the election of Mr. Adams to the presi- 
dency, in 1825, as if it were a just reproach to Mr. Clay. Mr. 
Clay defied him ! Mr. Calhoun also spoke of Mr. Clay's having 
been put " flat on his back" by the compromise act. " The sen- 
ator says, I was flat on my back, and that he was my master. Sir, 
I would not own him as my slave !" In regard to the compro- 
mise act, Mr. Clay said: " I saw the condition of the senator from 
South Carolina, and his friends." General Jackson had resolved 
to hang them ; and the Hon. John M. Clayton, then senator from 
Delaware, said to Mr. Clay : " These are fine fellows. It won't 
do to let Old Jackson hang them." And they got up the com- 
promise act. In this view, the sentiment contained in the words 
of Mr. Clay, " / saw the conditio7i of the senator from South Car- 
olina," was too big for utterance ! It was heaping coals of fire 
upon his head ! And it is well known, that Mr. Calhoun, as the 
leader of nullification, was the chief object of General Jackson's 
wrath. It was, therefore, supremely delicate in Mr. Clay, first, not 



140 MR. clay's wet 

to say all ; and next, to add, " and his friends," as if the obliga- 
tions of Mr. Calhoun, for that magnanimous interposition, were 
lessened, by his being only one of a class, who were rescued from 
the vengeance of General Jackson. 

One of the prominent issues of the presidential election of 1840, 
which resulted in a signal overthrow of the Jackson- Van-Buren 
dynasty, was the subtreasury, or, as its authors and advocates styled 
it, the independent treasury. It was generally allowed, that the 
popular opinion pronounced on this scheme, was decisively dam- 
natory. Mr. Clay moved its repeal in the senate, before the de- 
feated party had retired, and was somewhat playful and severe in 
his remarks. After the result of the presidential election was 
known, Senator Hubbard, of New Hampshire, of the Van Buren 
party, had been rather ignobly thrust aside by the legislature of his 
state, to give place to Levi Woodbury, secretary of the treasury 
under Mr. Van Buren. Mr. Clay inquired into the practical op- 
eration of the subtreasury, and in his remarks on this point, could 
not resist appealing to Mr. Hubbard, whose lease as senator was to 
expire in a few weeks : — 

" I am far from the receivers-general, and I wish I was much 
farther ; but what is its operation ? Perhaps the honorable sena- 
tor from New Hampshire [Mr. Hubbard] can tell, who, on all occa- 
sions, has stood forth the ready protector and advocate of the sec- 
retary of the treasury [Mr. Woodbury], though I must say, it was 
a most UNGRATEFUL return, for the secretary of the treasury to 
beat him in the late senatorial election." 

" While I am up," said Mr. Clay, " I will notice a few remarks of 
the senator from New York [Mr. Wright]. He says this is a very 
convenient party now coming into power, because it is without 
avowed principles — a coonskin, log-cabin party. What sort of a 
party must they be, who have been driven out of power by a party 
whose residence is a log-cabin, and whose covering is coonskins ? 
Sir, there must be something about it, or the defeated party would 
have never met so hard a fate from a party which they hold so 
much in contempt, and which is so contemptible, if the senator is 
correct. . . . Sir, I hope he will relieve me of the necessity of 
looking into that New Jersey affair, and of discovering the manner 
in which that gallant state was stripped of her sacred rights, and 
her authority trampled under foot, in a manner degrading to a de- 
liberative assembly, and disgraceful to the age in which we live." 

Senator Allen, of Ohio, had voted for Mr. Calhoun's land bill, 
which would nearly annihilate the vast interest of his state in the 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 141 

public domain ; and when hardly pressed by Mr. Clay, rose and 
said : "He voted on the ground of substituting that in preference 
to the plan of distribution among all the states." Of course he did. 
The manner in which Mr. Clay brought out the following reply, 
was worth witnessing : — 

" Oh ! ho ! — ah ! Is that the ground of the senator's vote ?" — 
Mr. Allen rose again, to say, " It was well known on his side of 
the house, that he chose between two evils." — " Well," said Mr. 
Clay, "all I will say is, that side of the house kept the secret re- 
markably well, and no one better than the senator himself. .... 
If the vote of the other sixteen senators was also misunderstood, in 
the same way as the senator's from Ohio, I shall be glad of it." 
. . . . " There is an old adage," said Mr. Clay, " according to 
which, charity should begin at home ; but, according to the doc- 
trines of the opponents of distribution, it neither begins nor ends at 
home." 

Mr. Wright, of New York, attempted to show, that the distri- 
bution doctrine of Mr. Clay and his friends, was identical with 
the right of reversion, and consequently was for the sole benefit of 
the ceding states. Mr. Clay replied : — 

" Neither the senator from Massachusetts, nor I, attempted to 
erect any such windmill, as the senator from New York has im- 
agined ; and he might have spared himself the heavy blows, which, 
like another famed hero, not less valorous than himself, he dealt 
upon it." . . . . " These gentlemen will not consent to lay a tax 
on the luxuries of the affluent, and by their votes, insist upon leav- 
ing the states under the necessity of imposing direct taxes on the 
farmer, the laboring man, the poor, and all the while set up to be the 
exclusive friends of the poor ! Really, sir, the best friends appear 
to be the worst enemies of the poor, and their greatest enemies 
their best friends." 

Mr. Clay continued : — 

" Corruption, it seems, is to be the order of the day. If I did 
not misunderstand the senator from South Carolina, he apprized us 
of the precise sum — one million of dollars — which was adequate to 
the corruption of his own state. He knows best about that ; but 
I should be sorry to think, tha.t ffty millions of dollars would cor- 
rupt my state. What may be the condition of South CaroUna at 
this time, I know not ; there is so much fog enveloping the dom- 
inant party, that it is difficult to determine her present latitude and 
longitude. What she was in her better days — the days of her 
Rutledges, Pinckneys, Sumpters, Lowndses, Cheveses — we all 
know, and I will not inflict pain on the senator by dwelling on it. 



142 



MR. CLAY S WIT 



It is not for me to vindicate her from a charge so degrading and 
humihating. She has another senator here [Mr. Preston], far more 
able and eloquent than I am, to defend her. Certainly I do not 
believe, and should be most unwilling to think, that the senator has 
made a correct estimate. 

" I will not detain the senate in dwelling long upon the idle and 
ridiculous story about the correspondence between the London 

bankers and some Missouri bankers And what did it all 

amount to ? These British bankers are really strange fellows. 
They are foolish enough to look to the safety of their money ad- 
vanced to foreigners ! If they see a man going to ruin, they will 
not lend him ; and if they see a nation pursuing the same road, 
they are so unreasonable as to decline vesting their funds in its 
bonds ! Very strange ! They have seen — all the world is too familiar 
with — those embarrassments and distresses brought upon the people 
of the United States, by the measures of Mr. Van Buren and his 
illustrious predecessor. They conclude, if he be re-elected, there 
will be no change of those measures, and no better times in the 
United States. On the contrary, if General Harrison be elected, 
they argue that a sound currency may be restored, confidence re- 
turn, and business once more be active and prosperous. They, 
therefore, tell their Missouri banking correspondents, that Ameri- 
can bonds and stocks will continue to depreciate, if Mr. Van Bu- 
ren be re-elected ; but that, if his competitor should succeed, they 
will rise in value, and sell more readily in the market. And these 
opinions and speculations of English bankers, carefully concealed 
from the vulgar gaze of the people, and locked up in the vaults of 
a locofoco bank (what wonders they may have wrought there, have 
not been disclosed), are dragged out and paraded, as full proof of 
the corrupt exercise of a foreign influence, in the election of Gen- 
eral Harrison, as president of the United States ! Why, sir, the 
amount of the whole of it is, that the gentlemen, calling themselves, 
most erroneously, the democratic party, have administered the gov- 
ernment so badly, that they have lost all credit and confidence, at 
home and abroad ; and because the people of the United States 
have refused to trust them any longer, and foreign bankers will not 
trust them either, they utter a whining cry, that their recent defeat has 
been the work of foreign influence ! Democratic party ! They 
have not the slightest pretension to this denomination. Thank 
God, true democracy, and true democrats, have not been run 
down." 

In reference to General Jackson's revival of the charge of " har- 
gai7i,'' in 1827, Mr. Clay said : " While he [Gen. Jackson] has 
made no protest against any benefit ihat may accrue to himself, 
from the dissemination of such a charge against me, he is extremely 
desirous not to be considered as my imblic accuser. He has indeed 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 143 

not appeared before a grand jury to support a bill of indictment 
against me. Neither did he arraign me, when, acting under the 
oath of a senator of the United States, he passed upon my nomi- 
nation," or LET it pass. — •* The public — as I certainly had — prior 
to the last summer, supposed, that the charge had originated with 
Mr. George Kremer's letter to the Columbian Observer. But 
recent disclosures of General Jackson and his partisans, satisfacto- 
rily establish, that, although the sternness of Mr. Kremer's patriot- 
ism prompted him ' to cry aloud and spare not,' he must be 
stripped of the borrowed merit of original invention, which impar- 
tial justice requires should now be transferred to a more distin- 
guished personage." 

In his speech of July 12, 1832, on President Jackson's veto 
of the bank bill, speaking of a charge on him and his friends, of 
" a premature agitation, for electioneering purposes," Mr. Clay 
says : " The other side understands perfectly, the policy of prefer- 
ring an unjust charge, in order to avoid a well-founded accusation." 

In reply to Mr. Calhoun's notions oi free trade, March 22, 1842, 
in senate, Mr. Clay said : " Yet still he [Mr. Calhoun] clings to 
his free-trade doctrine, though it has proved so ruinous to his own 
state, and to southern interests, as well as to northern ; — to that 
free trade, which has depressed the price of cotton to a point be- 
low what it has ever brought since the close of the last war. In 
spite of all the teachings of experience, as well in his own, as in 
all other nations, still he deafens us with the cry of '/ree trade .'' 
Really, the case of the honorable gentleman is without any paral- 
lel, that I know or ever heard of, unless it be that, which we find 
in the immortal work of Le Sage. Gil Bias was engaged in medi- 
cal practice with the far-famed Dr. Sangrado ; and after having 
gone as far as his conscience and his feelings could at all endure, 
he came at last to the doctor, and said to him : ' Sir, your system 
won't do. I have been bleeding and administering warm water 
with unflinching resolution, and the consequence is — and I must tell 
you frankly — all our patients — nobles, gentlemen, bourgeois, men, 
women, and children — all, all are dying ! I propose to change 
the system.' — 'What!' said the astonished Sangrado, 'change 
our system ? change our system ? Why, sir, do you not know, 
that I have written a book, and that I must preserve my consis- 
tency? Yes; and sooner than change my system, or write 
another book to prove it false, let nobles, gentlemen, bourgeois, 
men, women, and children, and all, go to — I will not say where.' 
The honorable senator seems to act on the self same plan. In- 
stead of recommending hot water and bleeding, he recommends 
free trade ; and though he sees, from year to year, that his pre- 
scriptions are kilUng all his patients, he spurns the idea of changing 
his system, because he must preserve his consistency !" 



144 MR. clay's wit 

In the same speech of March 22, 1842, Mr. Clay, in noticing 
his opponents on the land distribution policy, said : " We are met 
at every turn and corner, by these senators, with a demand for the 
restoration of the proceeds of the pubhc lands. They oppose loan 
bills, duty bills, every scheme of finance, and would stop the 
whole machinery of government, because a majority in the two 
houses of Congress differ in opinion from them, as to the disposal 
of the proceeds of the public lands. They cry aloud, in the high- 
est tones of plaintive and imploring eloquence : ' Give us back the 
lands /' Really, Mr. President, their condition recalls to recollec- 
tion the degraded case of the dishonored widow, who held a title 
to a certain description of copyhold estate in England, and had 
forfeited her right by misconduct. To obtain the restoration of 
her lands, she had to appear in open court, mounted on a black 
ram, and to present an humble petition, couched in terms which I 
will not exactly recite, lest they should offend the delicate sensi- 
bility of grave senators ; but of which the following is a slight para- 
phrase, and gentle expurgation, kindly furnished by a friend near 
me: — 

" ' Here I am, 

Riding on a black ram. 

Weak woman that I am ; 

And, in spite of worldly shame, 

I have played this wicked game — 

So, pray, Mr. Stewart, 

Lei me have my land again !' 

" Now, sir, although I should not wish to see such elegant cava- 
liers, as the two senators from New York and New Hampshire 
[Mr. Wright and Mr. Woodbury], appearing at the door of the 
senate-chamber, so ill and so ungracefully mounted, as they would 
be upon such an animal, may I not insist, before we let them have 
their land again," Sec. 

The following laconic epistles are not less instructive than hu- 
morous : — 

"New York, Dec. — , 1844. 
" Dear Sir : Deprived, as we are doomed to be, of the pleas- 
ure of having yourself at our head for a few ensuing years, will you 
allow us the minor pleasure of having ourself at yours, for a brief 
period, by accepting this hat ? and may it afford to you, sir, what 
you have so zealously labored to secure to us — protection. 

" Your obedient servant, 

" Orlando Fish. 
"Hon. Henry Clay." 

(reply.) 

" Ashland, Jan. 29, 1845. 
" My Dear Sir : I offer many and cordial thanks for the hat 
which you have kindly presented to me, and for the note which 



AND OTHER BRILLIANT QUALITIES. 145 

accompanied it. The hat might have ' protected' a better and 
wiser head than mine, but no head was ever covered by a better 
or more elegant hat. 

*' Your friend and obedient servant, 

" H. Clay. 
" Orlando Fish, New Yorky 

" In the name of wonder, what have we here V exclaimed Mr. 
Clay one day, during the extra session of 1841, as he was walking 
with a friend near the White-House, and observed a troop of oppo- 
sition members of Congress marching to call on Mr. Tyler, and, 
as afterward appeared, to congratulate that notorious worthy for 
his veto on the bank. Mr. Clay looked volumes of mischief at 
the spectacle. 

On the 2d of September, Mr. Buchanan said in the senate : 
" The president had shown himself a man of mettle." Mr. Clay 
replied : — 

'* The senator, who belongs to a party, boastingly demo- 
cratic, is found defending prerogatives — regal prerogatives. He 
would sustain the executive even in a whole shower of vetoes, 
when he and his friends, if consistent, should be in opposition to 
this monstrous principle of power. He [Mr. Buchanan] would 
go over to the president, and invite the president to come over to 
him and his party. Sir, the president is insulted. He is too 
honorable a man to indulge in such perfidy. Such treachery 
would be inconceivable. The soil of Virginia never had given, 
and never would give birth to treason. I believe in the purity of 
blood ; and the father of John Tyler was one of the noblest and 
most patriotic men of the ancient commonwealth of Virginia. It 
is impossible that the son should be guilty of such treason. The 
human mind could not conceive of greater turpitude. 

" Rumor had said, that a party of the opposition had visited the 
president's house, the night after the veto. He [Mr. Clay] did 
not know as to the fact. But he would suppose a case. There, 
he would imagine, among those gathered for the great congratula- 
tion, was the senator from South Carolina [Mr. Calhoun], looking 
as if he were deducting the nicest abstraction that had ever issued 
from his metaphysical brain. There, he presumed, was the sena- 
tor from Alabama [Mr. King], ready to settle, in the most positive 
manner, any question of order that might arise. He supposed 
many others were present. There, too, was the senator from 
Pennsylvania [Mr. Buchanan], as their distinguished leader, ad- 
dressing the president in something like the following manner : — 

" ' May it please your excellency : my political friends and my- 
self have come this afternoon, to deposite at your excellency's 
feet, the evidences of our loyalty and devotion. We have come 



146 MR. clay's wit. 

more particularly to express to your excellency the congratulations 
to which we think you are entitled, for having relieved the coun- 
try from the danger of a violation of its constitution, by the estab- 
lishment of a bank of the United States ; and we owe to your 
excellency our special acknowledgments for the veto with which 
you have favored the country to-day ; and for special reasons, we 
struggled against your excellency's friends in both houses of Con- 
gress, for days and weeks together ; we exhausted all our powers 
of logic and argument to defeat the alarming measure ; but, in 
spite of that, the friends of your excellency, in both houses, proved 
too strong for us, and carried it against our united exertions ; and 
we come now to thank your excellency, that you have done that 
against your friends, which we could not accomplish with all our 
exertions.' " 

Mr. Benton came in for his share, and while Mr. Clay was de- 
scribing his hypothetical part with graphic power, he rose, and denied 
with great vehemence that he was there. " It is only a supposition,^^ 
said Mr. Clay. Mr. Calhoun, too, denied. Mr. King colored, and 
Mr. Buchanan betrayed much feeling, when he rose to rejoin. Mr. 
Clay desired him to consider, that it was only an hypothesis. Mr. 
Buchanan would not consent to be interrupted. " Go on, go 
on, then," said Mr. Clay. It was reported that Mr. Buchanan 
afterward complained, that he could not convince his constituents, 
that he did not make that speech to his " excellency." 

Mr. Clay came up the Ohio, August, 1845, in the steamer Senate. 
" I had hoped," said Mr. Clay, as he went on board, "that I had 
done with public life. But I see I must go into the Senate again." 

It will have been seen, that some graver thoughts have been 
necessarily mixed up with these more sprightly demonstrations of 
Mr. Clay's intellectual and moral powers. The selections might 
have been greatly extended ; but these examples of brilliant, and 
sometimes dazzling emanations of thought and feeling, not confined 
to lighter matters, but often entering into the most solemn debate, 
may suffice to show the versatility and prolific character of these 
lofty and shining qualities, as developed in Mr. Clay's social inter- 
course and pubUc life. If the use of these weapons has occasion- 
ally offended, and sometimes made enemies, it has nevertheless 
been greatly effective for the chastisement of vice, and for the 
rebuke of political degeneracy. Happy the nation, which has 
a pure and overawing spirit, whom the people can and must ob- 
serve, standing up in the midst of them, to see and urge the right, 
to point out and denounce the wrong. 



MR. CLAY AS A POLITICIAN. 147 



CHAPTER VII. 

THB POLITICIAN STATESMAN DIPLOMATIST AND PARLIA- 
MENTARIAN. 

There is a manifest distinction between a politician and states- 
man, though one character may often be blended with the other. 
The term, politics, has a very wide and comprehensive scope. 
At one time, it means party politics, or the arts, devices, and means 
of promoting the interests of one party, in opposition to another, 
or all others — one branch of which is a public or national poUcy, 
ivocated by one party against another. In this sense, he is a pol- 
itician, who applies himself to support and advance his own party. 
In another application, the term indicates a national policy in rela- 
tion to the policies of other nations. This department blends 
itself with the appropriate functions of a statesman. So also may 
a domestic policy. But the more common understanding of the 
character of a politician, is that of a man who devotes himself to 
party politics. In this view, a man may at the same time be a very 
good politician, and a very bad statesman, and vice versa. He 
may be an honest or a dishonest politician. He may be a politi- 
cian just so far as the duties of a pure and patriotic statesman go ; 
or only as an unprincipled demagogue, all whose aims are selfish 
and base. In short, politics are not, in themselves, inconsistent 
with the character of the best and purest men ; and inasmuch 
as the most important, the most sacred, and the dearest interests 
of society, are in the hands of politics, the only pity is, that the 
best men are not the only politicians. Politics might be, and 
ought to be, a high and sacred vocation. No country can be well 
governed, where it is not so regarded, and where public opinion 
does not make it so. No man's virtue, patriotism, or religion, can 
be better, or more worthily employed, than in politics. There is 
no necessity that politics should vitiate him ; but it is his duty to 
purify politics. 

If honest politicians are rare, it will be found that Mr. Clay tias 
a strong claim to rank in that class, if, indeed, he has any claim at 



148 MR. CLAY AS A POLITICIAN. 

all to the character of a politician. Of this last, without deroga- 
tion, there is good reason for saying, that he never was a politician 
for himself. The history, exemplifications, and evidences of his 
patriotism, presented in another chapter of this work, will evince, 
that Mr. Clay has ever been as simple as a child, as to any anxiety 
or devices for his own advancement ; that, for the promotion and 
security of his great patriotic objects, he has many times prejudiced, 
not unfrequently sacrificed, his chances of political promotion and 
of personal aggrandizement ; and that his zeal for the public good, 
has been the greatest injury to himself. Who can doubt, that if 
ambition for precedence of all others, in political preferment, had 
been his passion, he could at almost any time for the twenty years 
previous to 1844, and even in that year, have arrived at the goal? 

It was for like reasons inconsistent with Mr. Clay's general 
character, that he should be a consummate politician for his party, 
in the practical tactics of its machinery — more especially in con 
sideration of the character of his political opponents. He could 
never — God be thanked — he could never depart from his rules of 
uprightness and honor — and his opponents knew it. During his 
whole political career, he has trusted to the intelligence and virtue 
of the people, and from that rule he has never deviated. Under 
the overwhelming persecutions he suffered from the great conspir- 
acy formed against him in 1824-5, during the pendency of the 
presidential election, by the house of representatives, which con- 
tinued for years, and have never altogether ceased, he still trusted 
in the intelligence and virtue of the people ; and in the hottest of 
that conflict, in 1827, while on his way home from Washington to 
Kentucky, with a copy of General Jackson's letter of the 6th of 
June of that year, to Carter Beverley, in his pocket, just obtained 
at Wheeling, he said in a note to a committee of his fellow-cit- 
izens of Maysville, who had invited him to a public dinner, re- 
spectfully declining it, " Although my enemies are resolved to 
spare no exertion to destroy my public character, I will triumph 
over all their machinations, because truth is triumphant^ and public 
justice is certain.'''' 

A few days after this, July 4th, in a letter of reply to a com- 
.nittee from Madison county, Kentucky, who had also invited him 
to a public dinner, and in their communication spoken in high 
commendation of his views of public policy, as comprehended in 
the American system, Mr. Clay said : — 

" All who are opposed to the American system — all who are 



MH. CLAY AS A STATESMAN. 149 

opposed to internal improvements, are now united with others in 
their endeavors to defeat the re-election of the present chief magis- 
trate [Mr. Adams], and to elevate another individual [Gen. Jack- 
son]. Should they succeed, there can not be a doubt, that the 
most powerful element of this association would afterward prevail 
in the conduct of public affairs. Against such inauspicious re- 
sults, the best security is the intelligence, candor, and virtue of the 
people. A reliance uyon this security has been the great maxim of 
my public life. I have never heretofore been deceived by it. And 
I am extremely glad to be authorized to assure you, that daily de- 
velopments of public sentiment justify the confident anticipation, 
that the truth of the maxim will be again confirmed." 

The result in that instance, and for the great controversy then 
pending, as is well known, was a disappointment. But still Mr. 
Clay has never abandoned his " maxim." The test of it may be 
long protracted; Mr. Clay may even sink down into his grave, 
before its truth, in regard to himself, will be fully realized ; never- 
theless, it is a good and a sound one. He who has reposed so 
much confidence in the people, will not in the end — certainly not 
in history and with posterity — lose his reward. 

No good man, no American citizen, could desire, that Mr. Clay 
should have been less honest, less generous, less confiding, less 
magnanimous, if that were necessary to have made him abetter politi 
cian. That he has been able to see and tell the truth, and that, on 
fit occasions, he has always been frank enough to do so, will be 
unfading honor to his name, and though he may have suffered, his 
country will reap the benefit. But Mr. Clay has not been a bad 
politician ; and the reason why will be found in the fact, that the 
public, the world, friends and foes, have believed he was an honest 
one. That honesty is the best policy, has been most strikingly 
illustrated in his public life. He may have made mistakes, as a 
politician. Who has not? But a general conviction of his up- 
rightness, has done more for him, than he has lost by errors. 
Even his alleged mistakes have this relief, that, they are open to 
question as facts of this description. He who is so generally right, 
lends a sanction even to his defects. 

But it is as a statesman, that Mr. Clay has been preeminent. 
In another chapter his shining pathway as the parent, advocate, 
and guardian of the American system, has been so far delineated, 
as to supersede an extended notice of it here. That prolific ge- 
nius which begat such a progeny, that skill which fashioned its 



150 MR. CLAY AS A STATESMAN. 

various branches and adjusted their relations, that science which 
comprehended their nature and functions, that power of develop- 
ment and adaptation which the process evinced, that knowledge 
of other nations as well as of this that was demonstrated, that dis- 
cernment of the new and peculiar position of the American peo- 
ple and their various interests indicated by the plan, that compre- 
hensive survey of the physical capabilities of this western world 
which must have been taken, that thorough analysis made of the va- 
rious systems of political economy which had been propounded to the 
world or reduced to practice, that practical view which every as- 
pect of this system manifests in relation to the moral, social, polit- 
ical, and physical peculiarities of the United States, and the per- 
fect construction of the whole as wanting nothing and requiring no 
emendation, more resembles the work of a power superior to man, 
than of man himself. The system is a fact, which all can see. 
And who will say, that this is an extravagant picture ? Nor will 
any pretend, that the system is not an invention, or deny its au- 
thorship. It was not, indeed, a creation of the elements of which 
it is composed ; but it was putting them in order. 

The purchase of American independence, was no blessmg, but 
would have proved a positive disadvantage, without this. Without 
this, it was no independence at all, but an aggravated bondage. 
The confederation was but a rope of sand, and contained in itself 
the elements of certain dissolution. It was on the eve of dissolu- 
tion, when the federal constitution was framed, and that instrument 
was made expressly to introduce and establish the American sys- 
em, or that part of it which constituted its nucleus. But where 
was the genius to find and bring out the several parts of that sys- 
em, to fashion them, and to estabUsh their relations? And where 
he eloquence adequate to commend them to the approbation of 
Jie public mind, and to the sanction of the public authorities ? It 
was the work of an age to do it. Providence sent Washington to 
clear the field of tyrants, and Henry Clay to fill the treasury of the 
emple of freedom. 

But this is only one point of view — a very strong one certainly 
— in which the sagacity and superior tact of Mr. Clay, as a states- 
man, appear. He seems to have been providentially endowed, 
inspired for the high, important, and influential functions of a 
statesman. The hunting up and putting together of the parts of 
the American system, and the work of making it perfect, so that it 
fiould have no defect, and require no addition, as to its elements, 



MR. CLAY AS A STATESMAN. 



151 



was a mission of unsurpassed beneficence to that portion of the 
human family, for whose benefit it was devised. The moment that 
Mr. Clay appeared upon the pubhc stage, he began to unfold this 
scheme, as if he were commissioned from above for that especial 
errand. He opened it in the legislature of Kentucky, before he 
took his seat in the national councils ; it was the first demonstra- 
tion he made in the latter field ; and it was his great theme for 
half a century of public life, from the time when he first proposed 
to the legislators of his adopted state to clothe themselves from 
head to foot, in domestic fabrics and productions, till he bade fare- 
well to the senate of the United States the 31st of March, 1842. 
It need not here be said, that he was opposed at the outset, and 
through his whole career ; that storms blew upon his face, and 
tornadoes swept past him, and earthquakes rocked the land, while 
he stood up, and marched onward, fighting his way to the goal of 
his ambition, the establishment of his system of public poHcy. It 
was in these conflicts, and in the gradual success that attended his 
efforts, that his powers and superiority, as a statesman, were 
evinced. It is not alone what he achieved, but what he had to 
oppose, that claims to be considered, in the estimate of his powers. 
One of the greatest feats of his life, as a statesman, in the man- 
agement of the domestic policy of the country, was in an ap- 
parent defeat. He was victor in the event of being beaten. The 
compromise tariff of 1833 was an imagined triumph of his oppo- 
nents. They had the whole subject under their control, and could 
do what they pleased with it. But the great principle of the pro- 
tective policy was rescued and shielded in the very act, which was 
conceded and sanctioned as the signal of its destruction. It was an 
opportune advantage taken of General Jackson's personal position 
in relation to Mr. Calhoun, that saved it. But for this, the whole 
of this part of the American system would have been swept by the 
board on that momentous occasion. 

To travel backward in the order of time — such order being not 
very material in these brief glances at the more prominent features 
of Mr. Clay's career as a statesman — the adjustment of the Mis- 
souri question, by his sole influence, in 1820, is a memorable 
instance of his consummate address in bringing order out of con- 
fusion, in throwing oil upon a troubled sea, appeasing the passions 
of an agitated people, and reducing to lasting repose a republic on 
the eve of dissolution, by determining a question, which, under 

Vol. L— 9 



152 MR. CLAY AS A STATESMAN. 

prudent management, could never again be the occasion of dis- 
turbance. 

Still going back, who that is acquainted with the history of the 
country, can be ignorant of the part enacted by Mr. Clay, in the 
war of 1812 ? He was then comparatively a youthful statesman. 
But if he had a young man's feelings, it can hardly be denied, 
that he had ripe views. They were at least a match for opponents, 
domestic or foreign. The facility with which he addressed himself 
to every public exigency, the unerring certitude of his measures 
for specific ends, the equal pace of his intellect and zeal, and the 
apparent infallibility of his judgment, in dealing with friends and 
foes, in making war and making peace, during such a crisis of 
public affairs, while nations were the parties in strife, were no bad 
certificates of those rare and high qualities, which constitute the 
sternest proof of statesmanship. 

It is not a purpose of this chapter to review in detail a long life 
that has been chiefly devoted to affairs of state, in quiet and turbu- 
lent times, the history of which is almost as familiar to the children 
of the land, as the lessons of their class-books. It is sufficient for 
the present aim, so far to direct attention to this feature of Mr. 
Clay's character, as simply to revive a common impression which 
the country, the world has received of the extraordinary aptitude 
and effectiveness of his talents as an American statesman of the 
nineteenth century. It is in this capacity that the world has 
ranked him among the prominent and leading men of the age, and 
this is the mark by which he will be known in history. To have 
originated, formed, propounded, and established a system of politi- 
cal economy for a young, but great nation ; to have watched over 
and fostered that system, for nearly half a century, with the affec- 
tion of a parent, and the fidelity of a patriot ; to have fought for it 
through evil report and good report, against foes abroad and foes 
at home, putting it forward when he could, and saving it when in 
jeopardy ; to have cheered the nation onward in prosperity, and 
to have come to her rescue in adversity ; to have fought her battles 
successfully in the public councils ; to have rebuked tyranny 
abroad, and to have pacified alarming domestic strifes — never une- 
qual to any occasion of the nation's wants — these are qualities 
which can not fail to be appreciated by those who observe them, 
and which can not fail to be observed, as well by contemporaries, 
as by future generations. 



MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 158 

The functions of a diplomatist are so nearly allied to those 
of a statesman, that it might seem difficult to find the difference 
between the two. They are properly but a department of a states- 
man's duty, in the management of foreign relations. But the 
office puts in requisition talents of a peculiar, of the highest order. 
The vast amount of duties of this class imposed on the British 
government, requires a separate department of a secretary for 
foreign affairs, and so of some other European governments. 
Hitherto this function of the government of the United States has 
been confided to the head of the state department, or secretary of 
state. It is properly, however, a distinct office, and will probably 
ere long require a separate department in the government of this 
country, as in other great commercial nations. There is not a 
more responsible position in the federal administration — none 
having more delicate or more difficult relations in charge — none 
on which such important and momentous consequences are always 
pending. It is true, that the theory of the government of the 
United States supposes, that the heads of the departments are 
executive instruments, and makes the president responsible for the 
discharge of their duties, and the secretary of state conducts his 
foreign correspondence in the name of the president. Neverthe- 
less, it must be seen, that, in the practical operations of the execu- 
tive, the heads of the departments are generally in fact heads. 
The president is guided by them, not they by the president. If 
the secretary of state is fit for the place, he is most fit to be the 
real responsible agent of his department. 

It can not but be seen, that the diplomatic department of the 
federal government, in the management of foreign relations, always 
holds in its hands the questions of peace and war — more even 
than Congress. Though Congress alone has the constitutional 
power to declare war, a secretary of state may breed war, and force 
Congress into it. Congress has no control over the subject, except 
to decide ultimately, whether the nation shall or shall not fight. 
The foreign diplomacy of the government is virtually the leading 
and controlling power ; and if the executive is disposed to war, 
his secretary of state, in most controversies that arise with foreign 
powers, can easily manage them so as to force Congress into the 
passive necessity of declaring it, and providing for it. 

Not less potent and responsible is the state department, in its 
diplomacy with foreign powers, in regulating and controlling the 
foreign commerce of the countr}'. These vast interests, therefore, 



154 MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 

questions of war, and the foreign commerce of the whole people, 
are very much in the hands, and at the disposal, of the secretary 
of state. Though Congress may be jealous of the action of this 
department, while they are sending for documents and calling for 
information, these great and momentous questions may be so far 
decided, that Congress can have no control, nor even a check. 

There is yet a more important view of the powers of the state 
department. It is not only capable of exercising an influence, as 
above described, over pending questions, but it may lay out work 
for the future, for good or for evil, the extent and importance of 
which, to the great and vital interests of the country, can not be 
estimated. While a sagacious and far-seeing statesman, at the 
head of this department, uniting his diplomatic skill with his patri- 
otism, makes wealth, and peace, and prosperity, for the nation, for 
generations to come, an incompetent man in this place, or a vicious 
one, who has neither the ability, nor the heart, to do good — who 
had rather breed war, than preserve peace — who has no just con- 
ception of the true interests of the country, or who is a mere em- 
piric in political economy — though the immediate effects of his 
incompetency and viciousness may not be apparent, ages may pass 
away, before remedies can be found for his mischief, or before that 
mischief shall be fully developed. 

As time advances, the evidences are accumulating on all sides, 
that the administration of John Quincy Adams was one of the 
most wise, patriotic, pacific, just, and wealth-producing, in the 
history of the country ; and no small part of that benefit may justly 
be ascribed to the aid he received from his secretary of state. Mr. 
Adams himself was a great statesman, bred in the school of states- 
men, and all his life exercised in the business of state, with recog- 
nised skill, and approved fidelity. The seven years immediately 
preceding the administration of Mr. Adams, was a period of great 
commercial embarrassment and distress ; and the seven years sub- 
sequent to his entrance on the duties of chief executive, was a pe- 
riod of great public and private prosperity. 

Of course, the distress of the first of the abovenamed periods, 
was chiefly owing to the want of protection, and the prosperity of 
the second, to the fact of protection ; but it was the prevalence of 
the counsels of Mr. Clay, and the beneficent administrative policy 
of Mr. Adams, united, that brought the country into the latter con- 
dition, and so long kept it there. Mr. Clay and his friends sup- 
ported Mr. Adams for the presidency, because they believed he 



MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 155 

was friendly to this policy, which they knew was indispensable to 
public prosperity. Mr. Adams as president, and Mr. Clay as sec- 
retary of state, occupied the positions, respectively, which enabled 
them to carry out this policy at home and abroad, in domestic and 
foreign commerce, and in the management of foreign relations. It 
might be difficult to say, which were more important, the home or 
foreign functions of the state department, for the accomplishment 
of these beneficent results. It is manifest, however, that the diplo- 
matic office of the secretary was indispensable, if not paramount ; 
and the skill, energy, and efficiency, with which it was conducted, 
during this administration, have no parallel in the history of the 
government. The number of treaties negotiated by Mr. Clay at 
the seat of government, in four years, exceeded the whole number 
that had been concluded there since the adoption of the constitu- 
tion, or in thirty-five years — among which were new treaty arrange- 
ments with Denmark, Prussia, the Hanseatic republic, and Aus- 
tria ; original treaties with Colombia and Central America ; and a 
settlement with Russia, for claims of American citizens. Impor- 
tant advances were made in diplomacy with the government of 
Great Britain, for various political and commercial objects, while 
Mr. Gallatin was minister there. The subject of commercial trea- 
ties was discussed with great ability, Mr. Clay advocating the prin- 
ciple as preferable to other mod'^s of regulating international com- 
merce. The navigation of the St. Lawrence, and the northeastern 
boundary, were topics of debate. The claims of American citizens 
on Denmark for spoliations of commerce, were adjusted. The po- 
litical and commercial relations of the United States with the nu- 
merous European powers, with the South American states, with 
the border republic of Mexico, and with other foreign parts, were 
promptly taken in hand, so far as they required any new attentions, 
and were managed with an adroitness, a vigor, a dignity, and a re- 
gard for American character and interests, which have usually 
characterized the conduct of Mr. Clay in all other capacities of a 
statesman. If in anything he has excelled, it has been in nothing 
more than as a diplomatist. Not unknown to the world, his repu- 
tation gave him a commanding position ; and every foreign power, 
in its diplomatic connexions and intercourse with Mr. Clay, felt, 
that it was dealing with a man worthy of respect, who would no 
more suifer indignity or wrong, on himself or his country, than he 
would do it. No diplomatist ever knew better how to take up a 
position, or how to maintain it, with opponents, than Mr. Clay. 



156 MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 

The reputation he acquired at the treaty of Ghent, in connexion 
with his associates, which was his debut in this capacity, signahzed 
his diplomatic talents, not less in the eyes of Europe, than of his 
own country. The British commissioners were routed in the field 
by the American commissioners, and they felt the power of the 
man, whom their own press in London was at that moment stig- 
matizing as " the furious orator, Clay," and as " the man who killed 
Tecumseh, and cut several razor-strops out of his back after he 
was dead !" Mr. Clay seems to have been born for triumph on 
every stage, where intellect and high-toned feeling are put in requi- 
sition, where mind clashes with mind, where address encounters 
address, knowledge vies with knowledge, and where intuitive per- 
ception of truth and right must needs have the mastery. 

In the despatches of the American commissioners at Ghent, of 
October 25, 1814, they speak discouragingly of the prospects of 
peace. As, in fact, there were formidable obstacles interposed by 
the British commissioners, in departing from the basis of negotia- 
tions proposed by Lord Castlereagh, in his letter of the 4th of No- 
vember, 1813, to the American secretary of state, and in setting 
up unexpected pretensions and claims, altogether inadmissible, this 
advice was proper and politic for its domestic influence in the Uni- 
ted States, that efforts for the prosecution of the war should not be 
relaxed. Mr. Clay's private opinion, however, was more encour- 
aging, and he wrote a private, confidential note to Mr. Monroe 
secretary of state, to that effect, to be used at his discretion. This 
is an evidence of Mr. Clay's sagacity. He was right. This pri- 
vate letter, no doubt, was of great service to the government, to 
induce them to maintain their ground. 

The reasons assigned by the American commissioners, in their 
despatches of the above date, which were founded on facts, in the 
then state of the negotiation, clearly put the faith of the British 
government, pledged in Lord Castlereagh's note to Mr. Monroe, 
on the defensive. The basis of negotiation, as proposed by his 
lordship, was " upon principles of perfect reciprocity, not incon- 
sistent with the established maxims of public law, and the maritime 
rights of the British empire." As " maritime rights" were the 
chief cause of the war, it was, of course, the chief question in con- 
troversy, and it was open for negotiation, so far as the parties chose 
to make it one ; but the new questions, about the Indian tribes, 
boundaries, and the military condition of the border lines, in the 
shape presented by the British commissioners, were in direct vio- 



MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 157 

iation of Lord Castlereagh's first two terms of the basis proposed 
by himself, and not less inconsistent with the understanding entered 
into at the first conference of the commissioners of the two govern- 
ments. But Mr. Clay saw, that the British commissioners had 
taken untenable ground, from which they could easily be driven by 
weapons drawn from the history of their own negotiations for cen- 
turies ; and hence his private note to Mr. Monroe. 

The credit and final triumph of the American commissioners, 
Messrs. Adams, Bayard, Clay, Russell, and Gallatin, in the joint 
acts of this negotiation, are, of course, to be shared equally among 
them. Which of them may have been more influential and more 
useful — as men acting in a collective capacity usually differ from 
each other in their qualifications and fitness for specific duties — 
may perhaps properly be a subject of private opinion, while it 
would be invidious to give public expression to such comparisons. 
It is sufiicient to say, that the protracted diplomacy of this occa- 
sion, as the world has ever since acknowledged, was managed with 
a truly American and patriotic spirit, and with consummate ability, 
on the part of the American commissioners, and that Mr. Clay had 
his share in it. He was taken from his position as speaker of the 
house of representatives, where he had been a leader in the war, 
and added to the commission after it was first appointed, in com- 
pany with Mr. Russell, because it was judged, that he was equally 
well fitted for the office of making peace. 

It can not but be instructive, as well as amusing, to observe, in 
the progress of this negotiation, that, at the very point where it 
seemed to be drawing to a close without result, and in the very 
note of the British commissioners in which they communicate their 
ultimatum of a proposal to get over the great obstacle, to wit, the 
inclusion of Indian tribes in the United States in the terms of paci- 
fication, they give up the point entirely, while — to preserve the 
appearance of consistency and generosity — they put on the air of 
conceding only a part of it. Of course the American commission- 
ers fell in with it, and the door was then opened for discussing the 
other points. 

It has been supposed by some, that the silence of the treaty of 
Ghent, regarding the great question of maritime rights, for which 
war was declared, was an abandonment of those rights on the part 
of the United States, and that nothing was gained by the war. It 
will be found, however, that the necessity of treating on that sub- 
ject was superseded by the general pacification of Europe, after the 



158 MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST 

overthrow of Napoleon. Anticipating a possible change of this 
nature, the instructions of the American government to their com- 
missioners, of the 15th of April, 1813, have in them the following 
contingent clause: "It is possible that some difficulty may occur 
in arranging this article [on maritime rights] respecting its duration. 
To obviate this, the president is willing, that it be limited to the 
present war in Europe. Resting as the United States do, on the 
solid ground of iio;ht, it is not presumable that Great Britain, es- 
pecially after the advantage she may derive from the arrangement 
proposed, would ever revive her pretensions. In forming any 
stipulation on this subject, you will be careful not to impair by it 
the right of the United States, or to sanction the principle of the 
British claim." The British commissioners, in their note of Oc- 
tober 21, 1814, say: "The undersigned conceive, that after the 
pretensions asserted by the government of the United States, a 
more satisfactory proof of the conciliatory spirit of his majesty's 
government, can not be given, than not requiring any stipulation on 
these subjects, which, though most important in themselves, no 
longer, in consequence of the maritime pacification of Europe, 
produce the same practical results." With this clearly implied 
pledge from the British government, that no practical difficulties 
were likely, thereafter to occur by their claims, and with the contin- 
gent instructions of the American government, above cited, it will 
be seen, that the American commissioners were justified in waiving 
the subject. No practical difficulties have since occurred in the 
progress of thirty years. 

In a short speech of Mr. Clay, at Vincennes (Ind.), June 6, 
1817, he made the following remarks, touching this treaty: — 

" The history of that negotiation [at Ghent] is short. Great 
Britain having, in conjunction with her allies, overthrown the power 
of Bonaparte, was freed from any European enemy. At liberty 
to apply the immense force which she had accumulated, to the 
prosecution of the American war, she sent her commissioners to 
Ghent, vainly expecting to dictate the conditions of peace. The 
terms which she proposed were rejected, and after much useless 
consumption of time, others, in the outset substantially tendered 
by the American commissioners, were ultimately agreed to, which 
compromitted the honor of neither party. The rejection of her 
extravagant propositions, was a duty so obvious, that it was im- 
possible for any one, partaking in the smallest degree of Amer- 
ican feelings, to pause in the discharge of it. No skill was requi- 
site in the management of such a negotiation ; and if its result was 



4 



MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 159 

SO widely different from what was indicated in its earlier stages, it 
must be attributed to the knowledge which the enemy had acquired 
of the American character and spirit, and to the conviction forced 
upon him, that the people of this country were not prepared tamely 
to assent to a violation of the integrity of their territory, nor to the 
surrender of one single national right." 

It was under Mr. Clay's administration of the state department, 
that the famous and much-debated Panama congress of the South- 
American republics, was convened, to which the United States 
were invited to send representatives. At the time, it was regarded 
as an event of importance. It was certainly calculated to excite 
interest, as well in Europe, as in America. It was a fit occasion 
to call forth sympathy in the people of the United States. Great 
principles of freedom, and of international law, common in their 
importance to North and South America, were involved in the 
relative social and political position of the occidental world toward 
the European. The holy league, or holy alliance, was then sup- 
posed to be concerting measures for the destruction of freedom 
throughout the world. The forces of Spain had been driven from 
the American continent; but the independence of her former pos- 
sessions in the south had not only not been recognised, but there 
seemed a disposition in the European powers to encourage the 
efforts of Spain for a reconquest of her lost dependencies. It 
was deemed of great political importance, that the colonial pos- 
sessions of Europe in America, should be maintained, and with 
this doctrine was coupled the declaration of the right of European 
powers to extend colonization in America, which must needs be 
vindicated on the same platform with the right of maintaining old 
possessions. Admitting these facts, which were extensively be- 
lieved, and not without foundation, it was impossible not to see, 
that the United States were deeply concerned in this political atti- 
tude of Europe, in the holy alliance. It was the example of North 
America, that had excited South America to rebellion, and where 
was this train of revolution to end? All must be recovered, or 
all lost, was the natural reasoning of European powers. 

There is positive evidence, that this question was submitted to 
the holy alliance, in the reply of Count Nesselrode to Mr. Mid- 
dleton, found in the correspondence, expressed in the following 
unambiguous form: "Whenever Spain has wished to discuss the 
future condition of South America, she has addressed overtures to 
all the allied powers of Europe." If that league was formed for 



160 MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 

any such purposes as have been ascribed to it — if it was not Ubel- 
led — the parties to it must have been very stupid in overlooking 
this question. But Count Nesselrode has placed it beyond doubt. 
Though the results of the congress of Panama, in respect to the 
domestic condition of the South American republics, have not yet 
proved so auspicious as could have been wished, it is impossible 
not to observe, that the moral effect of the representation in that 
body from the United States, may have been sufficient to discourage 
the demonstration that was supposed to be hatching in Europe for 
the reconquest of South America, and for other and more ex- 
tended congenial operations. The instruction conveyed by this 
hypothesis, is replete with interest, as furnishing probable evidence 
of the importance of that movement — an importance which can 
not be overestimated — a movement which was innocent in itself, 
hazarding nothing, and in all probability throwing a shield over a 
whole continent against the machinations and advances of des- 
potism. 

It will be seen, indeed, by Mr. Clay's instructions to the Pana- 
ma mission, he generously allows, that the continental powers of 
Europe had been somewhat discouraged in their scheme to support 
Spain, by the fact, that Great Britain had followed the United 
States in recognising the independence of South America. Mr. 
Clay, however, adduces this apparent pause of the holy alliance, 
for such a reason, rather as a ground of encouragement to the 
course proposed by the United States, than as reliable evidence of 
the future security of the American republics against such a con 
spiracy. He proposes to take advantage of such a state of things, 
to rescue and shield the free institutions of the western world for 
ever from such perils. 

Such, it may be supposed, were the views, and such the motives 
of Mr. Adams and his cabinet, in consenting to and resolving on 
the representation of the United States in the congress of Panama, 
in connexion with other important political objects, such as an in- 
terchange of republican sympathies, and laying the foundation for 
future commercial intercourse. The skill and tact with which Mr. 
Clay managed the complicated diplomacy of this occasion, steer- 
ing his course, with infallible aim, between Scylla on the one side, 
and Charybdis on the other, are unrivalled in the history of such 
transactions. He saw it was necessary to make an impression on 
the holy alliance. He therefore addressed himself to the emperor 
of Russia, through Mr. Middleton, the minister of the United 



MR. CLAY AS A DIPLOMATIST. 161 

States, at St. Petersburg. With an eye on the occasion and the 
object, a careful perusal of that document, can not fail to excite 
sentiments of admiration. There is reason to believe, that it pro- 
duced its intended effect — certainly, that it was not without influ- 
ence. Considering that Count Nesselrode was one of the most 
accomplished diplomatists of the age, his reply is a sufficient indi- 
cation of the impression that had been made. 

But Mr. Clay's letter of instructions to the Panama mission is 
not less comprehensive and perfect in its kind, than that system of 
domestic policy devised by him, commonly called the American 
system. This is an American system oi foreign policy, gathering 
up all the principles sanctioned by authority and experience in the 
past, and adding, from the secretary's prolific genius, all that might 
seem necessary for the future. It will be read with interest, and 
can not be read with too much attention. No political opponent 
has ever been able to find fault with it. The mission was violent- 
ly opposed, both in the senate and in the house of representatives, 
and the most disastrous results were predicted. It was not be- 
lieved, that the secretary of state could give unexceptionable in- 
structions to so delicate and difficult an embassy, and the docu- 
ment was afterward called for in the confident expectation of game. 
But it was no sooner seen, than they who called for it, wished it 
out of sight. Instead of destroying its author, as was hoped, it 
tended rather to immortalize him. It is a comprehensive Ameri- 
can code of foreign policy, equally applicable to South, as to 
North, America — truly American, as opposed to the political sys- 
tems of Europe, put forth for the very purpose of opposing them, 
as to all their defects, vices, and enormities. 

It is remarkable, that Mr. Clay, in this document, should have 
incidentally anticipated, twenty years in advance of any special in- 
terest felt on the subject, the whole of the Oregon question, not 
only defining the bounds of the territory, to exclude the British 
claims altogether, but denying all right in any European power to 
make settlements there. The following is a part of his statements 
and reasoning on the subject : — 

" From the northeastern hmits of the United States in North 
America, to Cape Horn in South America, on the Atlantic ocean, 
with one or two inconsiderable exceptions ; and from the same 
cape to the ffty-Jirst degree of north latitude, in North America, on 
the Pacific ocean, without any exception, the whole coasts and 
countries belong to sovereign resident American powers. 
There is, therefore, no chasm within the prescribed limits, in 



1C2 MR. clay's congressional career. 

xhich a new European colojiy could he now introduced without 

VIOLATING THE TERRITORIAL RIGHTS OF SOME AMERICAN 

STATE. An attempt to acquire such a colony, and by its es- 
tablishment to acquire sovereign rights for any European power, 
must he regarded as an inadmissible encroachment^ (See the 
document, Niles's Register, vol. 36.) 

This language is not only unambiguous, but it is of especial 
value, as the opinion of such a mind, at such a time ; and of so 
much greater value as it was incidental. It will be seen by the 
document itself, that the reasoning based on this opinion, and 
sentiments allied to it, are presented with great force. It was 
an argument made in advance, more powerful, and more irresisti- 
ble, than any other that ever can be made. For the other points 
of these instructions, let the letter speak for itself. Besides the 
great principles laid down in this document for the guidance of 
future statesmen and diplomatists, so clearly stated and reasoned 
out, that none can fail to appreciate them, and be convinced by 
them, of whatever nation they may be, the country, the world, 
will never know the extent of the benefit of that mission, because 
it is impossible to know what evils, and what calamities, to whole 
nations, and to a continent, it prevented by its moral influence on 
European pov/ers.* 

Mr. Clay's first duties, as a legislator, were discharged as a 
member of the general assembly of Kentucky, to which he was 
elected in 1803, where he earned a reputation which lifted him to 
the senate of the United States in 1806, by the choice of the 
legislature of which he was a member, to fill up the unexpired 
term of the Hon. John Adair, who had resigned his seat. This 
term closed the 4th of March, 1807. In the summer following, Mr. 
Clay was again sent to the state legislature, and made speaker of 
the assembly. After a service of two years in that body, in this 
capacity, he was again, in 1809, returned to the United States 
senate, to fill up two years of the unexpired term of the Hon. 
Buckner Thruston, resigned. 

In 1811, the prospects of war with Great Britain induced him 
to forego the higher dignity of a seat in the senate of the United 
States, to which the legislature of Kentucky would gladly have 
appointed him for a full term of six years, and to stand as a candi- 
date before the people for the house of representatives, to which 

• For the documents referred to in this chapter, regarding the Panama mission, 
see Niles's Register, vols. 35 and 36 ; and for the action of Congress on the sub- 
ject, see Gales & Seaton's Congressional Debates. 



MR. clay's congressional CAREER. 163 

he was elected, preferring that field in consideration of the stale 
of the country. When Congress assembled, November 4th, 1811 
(a called session), Mr. Clay was elected speaker of the house, on 
the first ballot, by a majority of 31, out of 128 members present, 
it being the first day he ever sat as a member of that body, which 
honor was continuously conferred on him till 1825, when he was 
appointed secretary of state by Mr. Adams, with the exceptions, 
that, having been appointed one of the commissioners to negotiate 
peace with Great Britain, in January, 1814, he resigned to enter 
upon those duties, but was reappointed speaker at the opening of 
the fourteenth Congress, 1815 ; and in 1820, being obliged to 
retire from Congress, to repair his fortunes, which had been in- 
jured by loaning his credit, he again resigned the speakership, 
and vacated his place in Congress, till 1823, when he was re- 
turned again to the house of representatives, and re-elected 
speaker. The following lines were prompted by this return of 
Mr. Clay to the house, and to the speaker's chair, and pub- 
lished in the National Intelligencer : — 

" As near the Potomac's broad stream, t'other day, 

Fair Liberty strolled in solicitous mood, 
Deep pondering the future, unheeding her way, 

She met goddess Nature beside a green wood. 
' Good mother,' she cried, ' deign to help me at need; 

I must make for my guardians a speaker to-day. 
The first in the world, I would give them.' — ' Indeed ! 

When I made the first speaker, I made him of CLAY.' *' 

Mr. Clay, therefore, was elected speaker of the house of repre- 
sentatives of the United States seven times, and occupied the 
chair, in all, about thirteen years — each Congress being elected 
for two years. 

After the close of Mr. Adams's administration, and Mr. Clay's 
retirement from the department of state, he remained in private 
life two years, and was returned to the United States senate in 
1831, where he held a seat uninterruptedly till the 31st of March, 
1842, having spent thirty years of his life in the service of the 
federal government, five or six in the domestic service of Ken- 
tucky — being thirty-nine years from the time he was first elected 
to the legislature of his own state, till he resigned his seat in the 
senate of the United States, in 1842. 

The dignity with which Mr. Clay presided over the house of 
representatives for the many years he occupied the chair, the order 
he maintained, and the despatch of business under his hand, have 
never been approached by any other speaker. He never hesi- 



164 MR. clay's congressional career. 

tated for a decision, and rarely was it appealed from. The tur- 
bulent members, such as John Randolph, were kept und-^r a dis- 
cipline which they feared, and sometimes hated. Mr. Clay could 
put on dignity like a cloak in the discharge of public duties, and 
lay it aside as easily in the familiarities of social relaxation. 
" How can you preside over that house to-day?" asked a friend, 
as he set Mr. Clay down at his own door, after sunrise in the 
morning, from a party. " Come up," said Mr. Clay, " and you 
shall see how I will throw the reins over their necks." He did 
go up, watched Mr. Clay as he entered the house, stayed through 
the sitting, and remarked the overawing power which he wielded 
over the assembly, from the moment he entered till he retired — so 
entirely different from the relaxations of the social board. 

In the senate he was theoretically among his peers — practically 
he was a prince. The moral influence he exercised there can not 
be estimated. His deference was exemplary, while his lofty bear- 
ing was commandiog. 



MR. CLAY AS AN AMERICAN PATRIOT. 



165 



CHAPTER Vm. 

MR. CLAY AS AN AMERICAN PATRIOT. 

It will be obvious, that the evidences of this character are 
rather incidents of history, running through a long Hne, and scat- 
tered over a wide field, than an assemblage of facts grouped at a 
single point, and that such a character could not be fully appre- 
ciated by the isolated notices, in their chronological order, which 
contribute to establish such a reputation. Without anticipating 
history, in the proper amplitude and appropriate details of a work 
of this kind, and while engaged in a consideration of those per- 
sonal attributes of Mr. Clay, which comprehend the numerous 
and variegated phases of his character, it would be manifest injus- 
tice to him, and a defect in biography, not to devote some special 
and separate attention to a topic, which, in this case, will be found 
to have one of the strongest claims. 

In Mr. Clay's reply to Mr. Rives, of Virginia, August 19, 
1841, touching Mr. Tyler's veto of the bank-bill, he incidentally 
gave one of the finest sketches of the virtue of patriotism, that 
can be found in the English language. In the earlier part of that 
day, Mr. Clay had, very temperately and respectfully, reviewed 
the veto-message, in a speech before the senate, to which Mr. 
Rives replied, in vindication of Mr. Tyler. Mr. Clay thought 
Mr. Rives had ascribed to him language which he had not used, 
and imputed to him motives, of which he was not conscious. 
On one of the points of rejoinder, Mr. Clay said : — 

" The senator says, that, if placed in like circumstances, I 
would have been the last man to avoid putting a direct veto upon 
the bill, had it met my disapprobation ; and he does me the honor 
to attribute to me high qualities of stern and unbending intrepidity. 
I hope, that in all that relates to personal firmness, all that con- 
cerns a just appreciation of the insignificance of human life — 
whatever may be attempted to threaten or alarm a soul not easily 
swayed by opposition, or awed or intimidated by menace — a stout 
heart and a steady eye, that can survey, unmoved and undaunted, 



166 MR. CLAY AS AN 

any mere personal perils that assail this poor, transient, perishing 
frame, I may, without disparagement, compare with other men. 
But, there is a sort of courage, which, I frankly confess, I do not 
possess, a boldness to which I dare not aspire, a valor which T 
can not covet. I can not lay myself down in the way of the wel- 
fare and happiness of my country. That I can not, I have not 
the courage to do. I can not interpose the power with which 1 
may be invested, a power conferred, not for my personal benefit, 
nor for my aggrandizement, but for my country's good, to check 
her onward march to greatness and glory. I have not courage 
enough, I am too cowardly for that. I would not, I dare not, in 
the exercise of such a trust, lie down, and place my body across 
the path that leads my country to prosperity and happiness. This 
is a sort of courage widely different from that which a man may 
display in his private conduct and personal relations. Personal or 
private courage is totally distinct from that higher and nobler cour- 
age which prompts the patriot to offer himself a voluntary sacri- 
jice to his country's good" Again : " Apprehensions of the im- 
putation of the want of firmness sometimes impel us to perform 
rash and inconsiderate acts. It is the greatest courage to be able 
to bear the imputation of a want of courage. But pride, vanity, 
egotism, so unamiable and offensive in private life, are vices which 
partake of the character of crimes in the conduct of public af- 
fairs. The unfortunate victim of these passions can not see be- 
yond the little, petty, contemptible circle of his own personal in- 
terests. All his thoughts are withdrawn from his country, and 
concentrated on his consistency, his firmness, himself. The 
high, the exalted, the suhlime emotions of a patriotism, which, 
soaring toward Heaven, rises far above all mean, low, or selfish 
things, and is absorbed by one soul-transporting thought of the 
good and the glory of one's country, are never felt in his impeyie- 
trable bosom. That patriotism, which, catching its inspiration 
from the immortal God, and leaving at an immeasurable distance 
below, all lesser, grovelling, personal interests and feelings, ani- 
mates and prompts to deeds of self-sacrifice, of valor, of devotion, 
and of death itself— that is public virtue — that is the 

NOBLEST, the SUBLIMEST OF ALL PUBLIC VIRTUES." 

It is manifest, that the passages above cited, were not designed 
as a disquisition on the virtue of patriotism. The speech, of 
which they are extracts, was extemporaneous, in reply to Mr. 
Rives, who had just sat down. It was indeed an impromptu. 
Mr. Clay had not intended to answer Mr. Rives, even to the 
close of his speech, and of course had taken no notes, and digest- 
ed no plan. It was not till a senator at his elbow had prompted 
him to replv. that he suddenlv rose to do it. It was, therefore, 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 167 

without one syllable of preparation, that he uttered those burning 
thoughts, which can never be read without a deep and profound 
sympathy. The effect on the senate and spectators, was electrical 
thrilling. 

Notwithstanding this want of forethought, who, even with time 
and pains, in an oration or with the pen, could have presented 
this virtue in a clearer, stronger, or more impressive point of 
view ? The words marked, at the end of the first and second 
passages, were not intended as a definition. Yet, who could have 
given a better one, in a rhetorical form ? Nothing but a distinct 
perception, apparently nothing but a deep and heartfelt sympathy 
with this pure and exalted sentiment, could have qualified the 
speaker, without premeditation, to describe it with such surpassing 
eloquence. 

Mr. Clay, on this occasion, had been treated, as he thought, 
unfairly. Certainly there had been no small provocation for se- 
verity on his part toward Mr. Tyler. One of the great and lead- 
ing measures of the whig party, in the first (an extra) session of 
the twenty-seventh Congress, convoked by proclamation of the 
patriot Harrison — a measure which had been more distinctly recog- 
nised in that call, than any other, as claiming the earliest attention 
of the new administration, for which the extra session was chiefly 
summoned — had been vetoed by Mr. Tyler, notwithstanding great 
pains had been taken, in the organic form of the law, to adapt it 
to his alleged scruples. It was in fact understood, that Mr. Tyler 
had agreed to give it the required official sanction. Oppressed 
with this disappointment, and laboring under the weight of a long- 
protracted sympathy for a country suffering inconceivable evils 
under a deranged and bad currency, and the bad management of 
its financial affairs, Mr. Clay rose in the senate, and with the ut- 
most forbearance toward the acting-president, reviewed his veto- 
message, and respectfully defended both houses of Congress 
against its unjust imputations. Mr. Rives, either from having 
presumed that Mr. Clay would handle Mr. Tyler roughly, and 
from having previously arranged his reply accordingly, withou 
being able to adapt it — or, being resolved to show fight, without 
a fit occasion, said things which were not correct, and perverted 
Mr. Clay's speech. " The senator," said Mr. Clay, " begins with 
saying, that I charge the president with ' yerfidy.'' " After Mr. 
Clay had risen, and begun to speak of this and other imputations, 

Vol. I.— 10 



] 68 MR. CLAY AS AN 

equally incorrect, he kindled into warmth, and acquitted himself 
in a manner, which was pronounced, even by some of his politi- 
cal opponents, to be one of his happiest eflforts. He certainly 
did fall rather heavily on the acting-president in this rejoinder, as 
will have been seen in the passages above quoted — not that he in- 
ended, that his contrast to a patriot should be applied in that di- 
ection. But the application was unavoidable. It would be 
singular, if this accidental description of the virtue of patriotism 
and its opposite vice, should in this way present to the world a 
most striking example of each — the speaker for one and a chief 
magistrate of the United States for the other. Nothing, it is sup- 
posed, was more remote from the design of the speaker himself 
at the time, than that such an application should be made in either 
case. 

" That patriotism, which, catching its inspirations from the im- 
mortal God, and leaving at an immeasurable distance below, all 
lesser, grovelling, personal interests and feelings, animates and 
prompts to deeds of self-sacrifice, of valor, of devotion, and of 
death itself — that is public virtue." 

Furnished by such authority with this definition, it is proposed 
to see how it applies to the author himself — a high and stern test, 
as can not be denied. 

It has sometimes, and with much reason, been remarked, that 
Providence raises up men for all great public exigences, and en- 
dows them vnth the required powers. It has also been remarked, 
with not less reason, that such exigences seem to demand a lead- 
ing mind. Probably not a single individual in the wide world, 
competently informed, would challenge the applicability of this 
theory of Divine providence, to the history of the immortal Wash- 
ington. The admirable adaptation of his character to the positions 
he occupied, and of his powers to the tasks imposed upon him, 
showing him not less endowed with faculties for heroic deeds, than 
with virtue to demean himself modestly after the most brilliant suc- 
cesses in the field, and in the chair of state, would furnish a diffi- 
cult problem for one who has no faith in the beneficent arrange- 
ments of the Deity. 

The achievement of American Independence, and the erection 
of the machinery of the American government, were accomplished 
by a class of distinguished men, fitted for the time and the work. 
But the organic structure was a mere skeleton of the body politic. 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 169 

Time alone could make the body perfect m all its parts, and 
healthful in the performance of its various functions. Political 
society after the revolution was a chaos. But the materials of a 
magnificent and beautiful creation were there ; they gradually came 
to their places by the supervising intelligence that had ordered 
them ; day and night came and went in regular succession ; the 
stars found their places, and each constellation was grouped ; and 
the earth began to bring forth her fruit in due season. Neverthe- 
less, it was a young creation, and being the work of man, it had 
its imperfections, admirable though it was. The great defect was 
the want of a national policy, domestic and foreign, commercial 
and financial, adapted to the position of the United States among 
the family of nations, and to its moral and physical capabilities. 
The nation struggled along for an age, under great disadvantages, 
arising from this cause. First, the articles of confederation were 
doomed to a failure, by an experimental demonstration of their in- 
competency, under an accumulating public debt, and the prospect 
of national bankruptcy. The adoption of the federal constitution, 
and the establishment of the first bank of the United States, put 
the country in a new position, with cheering prospects. One of 
the professed and grand objects of this new organization of the 
government being to protect and foster American labor, this policy 
was immediately carried into effect by the first act of the first Con- 
gress, in the imposition of duties on imports, discriminating as far 
as possible for protection, but not without regard to a revenue 
commensurate with the expenses of government, and the prospective 
demands of the public debt. But the common notions of a tariff 
at that period, were most unripe. The nation was in its infancy, 
and without experience in political economy. A system of inter- 
nal improvements, to promote and facilitate domestic commerce 
and intercourse among the states and territories, was scarcely thought 
of. The powers and capabilities of the country were in a state of 
comparative inaction, not less in regard to the application of the 
most productive means of national wealth, than of individual enter- 
prise. A system of national political economy, broad, compre- 
hensive, creative, and active, competent to evoke the energies of 
the people, and to employ labor with the greatest profit, was yet 
in embryo. The country was a giant infant, fast growing up to 
full powers, without knowing how to employ them for the best re- 
sults, and without the means of employment for that end. Indeed, 
the necessities of the country, for want of a system of national pol- 



170 



MR. CLAY AS AN 



icy, in all respects adapted to its internal resources and capabilities, 
and its foreign relations, were scarcely less urgent, or less distres- 
sing, than at the period and during the time of the American revo- 
lution. 

It was at this juncture of American public affairs, that the young, 
since called the great, statesman of the West, began to apply him- 
self to the study of this great national exigency. He appeared as 
a senator in the national councils in 1806, during which term of 
service — it being but the complement of the unexpired term of the 
Hon. John Adair, resigned — he delivered his first speech on inter- 
nal improvement, as one of the branches of that system of national 
policy, which at that time was being formed in his mind. The 
speech was not reported, and is therefore not extant. The first 
great practical application of this doctrine, for national purposes, 
by the general government, was in the conception and commence- 
ment of the Cumberland road, which virtually reduces the Alle- 
ganies to a plain, and wends its way toward the Rocky mountains, 
connecting the East with the West, by a passage, on which the 
traveller rolls as smoothly as on the Macadamized street of a city, 
constituting a great social and political bond, as well as a channel 
of domestic commerce. Nor can the more recent invention of 
railroads supersede the importance and utility of this grand project. 
It is still forcing its way over mountains, valleys, and rivers, to the 
banks of the Mississippi, and will soon cross its channel for the 
mouth of the Columbia, where it may appear in some other form, 
but yet must appear. Thus will a continent have been traversed 
by this political ploughshare, first struck in the ground by the fa- 
ther of the American system, in the beginning of the nineteenth 
century, pointing to the waters of the Pacific. On the line of this 
work, near Wheeling, a monument was erected, surmounted by 
Genius and Liberty, inscribed to the statesman who sustained the 
enterprise. But the work itself is, and, as it progresses, will re- 
main, its own best monument to the fame of its advocate. It is 
not the fault of Mr. Clay, that the system of internal improvement, 
conceived by him, and advocated with such persevering and in- 
domitable constancy, against obstacles sufficient to dishearten any 
man, who has not faith in the future and in himself, has not al- 
ready interlocked and bound together the states of the Union by 
mdissoluble ties. The progress of events demonstrates, that this 
great conception must be executed, in one way or another, though 
tardy in its movement. The defect of duty in an unnatural parent. 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 171 

will be supplied by the members of the family, and by the single 
efforts of individual enterprise. 

In ]810, having been again returned to the senate of the United 
States, by the legislature of Kentucky, Mr. Clay delivered his first 
speech in Congress, on domestic manufactures. He had before 
zealously advocated this policy in the legislature of Kentucky, and 
moved a resolution there, tha- all the members of the body should 
clothe themselves, from head to foot, with the products of domes- 
tic manufacture, as an example for the people. It was this patri- 
otic effort, which brought on the encounter, in 1808, between Mr. 
Clay and Humphrey Marshall, who were both members of the 
legislature — the latter being a virulent opponent, and having availed 
himself of this occasion, to apply to Mr. Clay degrading epithets, 
and to impute to him unworthy motives. 

It should be observed, that Mr. Clay was but a young man, 
when he had pretty much matured his American system. It 
was a comprehensive, gigantic conception, opening a new era 
in the political history of the country, not less important to the 
nation as such, than was the establishment of American indepen- 
dence to the world, as the birth of a new race of freemen. It was, 
indeed, a plan for the consummation of American independence, 
in the practical application of its principles. Freedom in the first 
instance was nothing worth, it was but a mockery — without the 
real and substantial independence which this system of national 
policy contemplated. 

The peculiar position of the United States in the family of na- 
tions, the peculiar interests of the American people, and the yet 
more peculiar frame of American political society, were all, in all 
their ramifications and relations, necessary to be considered, in 
devising a system of policy adapted to this new and wide field. It 
was a gigantic enterprise, an herculean labor. None but a master 
spirit, endowed with corresponding moral virtues, was equal to 
the task. A more comprehensive, and more responsible demand 
on intellectual powers, was perhaps never made. Genius alone, 
balanced by the ripest judgment, could evoke the materials of his- 
tory, necessary for the composition of this work, and adjust their 
new relations and forms to all future exigencies of the American 
people. To originate, organize, and prepare it for use, so as to 
sustain the test of the severest and longest trial, was the achieve- 
ment of no ordinary mind. Nor could the mind, that was capable 
of conceiving such a system, for such a new state of society, placed 



172 



MR. CLAY AS AN" 



in new circumstances, governed in a new way, and sustaining new 
and untried relations, fail to perceive, that such a policy must en- 
counter new and formidable obstacles, and wait on years, perhaps 
ages, before it would be appreciated ; — that his own gray hairs and 
wornout energies might descend into the grave, under the incipient 
Jabors of such an enterprise ; — that those most benefited, might be 
ungrateful ; and that posterity alone could be relied on, to render 
due honors to his genius and to his exertions. Faith, courage, 
invincible purpose, and undying love of country, were alone suf- 
ficient to begin, and never to flag, in such labors. 

That this high praise, for this great work, is due to Henry Clay, 
it is supposed will not be denied. The American system, as 
devised by him, can not be improved. It is perfect, enduring as 
time, and will be honored by time. Its principles, parts, and 
structure, were the product of intellect ; its advocacy, through a 
long succession of years, in adversity as well as in prosperity, 
without regard to self, against the fiercest, most overpowering oppo- 
sition, is due to the heart. Numerous have been the occasions, as 
all know, when Mr. Clay might have taken the popular breeze, 
and been wafted to the highest pinnacle of ambition — when, too, 
as was thought and argued by his friends, he might have done it 
without reproach — when, indeed, it was urged upon him as a duty 
to his country, to his friends, to himself. But always judging for 
himself, as every man must do in all cases of casuistry, which can 
be settled only by the feelings of his own heart, his answer has 
uniformly been, when compelled by the decisions of conscience, 
to dissent from others, in such debate : " I had rather be right, 
than be president." His magnanimity, has, on more occasions 
than one, barred the door to his advancement. In the case of the 
notorious charge of " bargain,''^ for the election of Mr. Adams, in 
1825, it has, for nearly a quarter of a century, been in the power 
of Mr. Clay, at any moment, to prove by positive evidence, that 
the dishonorable proposals were made by those who brought the 
charge ; but who, having been spurned, and anticipating an arraign- 
ment on the same count, were first in court, with a gross fabrica- 
tion in their right hand. But magnanimity, and that to a political 
opponent, who was himself the agent in this transaction, has hith- 
erto kept the key of the secret. In a future page of this work, it 
will be unlocked. 

Not even an enemy will deny, that Mr. Clay has always advo- 
cated those measures of national policy, which he thought to be 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 173 

right and best, at all hazards. Knowing this to be his character, 
his political opponents have been accustomed to take advantage 
of it, when it answered their purpose. It is known, that for a large 
portion of his public life, he has had to contend in the ranks of the 
opposition, himself the chief. It is not less known, that, in this 
position, he was always bold and fearless. At the head of his own 
system of public policy, he has ever stood, to put it forward when 
he could, to shield it when stormed by assailants, to rescue it when 
borne downward toward destruction, and to save and keep in ope- 
ration such parts of it as he might, never for himself, but always 
for his country. Convinced alike of its beneficent tendencies, by 
the clearness of his conceptions, by the results of his observation, 
by the practical experiments that have been made of it, and by the 
disastrous operation of opposing measures, he has stood by it in all 
trials, under all discouragements, in all discomfitures, as a martyr 
stands for the truth at the stake, and dies for it. As well could 
Washington have been seduced to betray his country to foreign 
and hostile armies, as Henry Clay to surrender the interests of his 
country to foreign policy. Both, in their own convictions, fought 
for the same great end — one with the sword, the other in the pub- 
lic councils — one to acquire, the other to maintain, national inde- 
pendence. The delivering up of the revolutionary armies to 
British power, could not have been more disastrous to the country, 
in the opinion of Washington, than would be the surrender of the 
American system, in the opinion of Henry Clay. To do the last, 
as Mr. Clay thinks, would place the country just where the doing 
of the former would have done, to wit, in its ancient condition of 
colonial bondage. Mr. Clay, therefore, has on all occasions, in 
total disregard of consequences to himself, maintained and defended 
these measures, with a self-sacrificing determination — a determina- 
tion to triumph or die with them. 

The consequence of this persevering and disinterested course, 
has been, that Mr. Clay's policy has prevailed, while he has been 
made a victim to it. With a martyr spirit, he fought for the coun- 
try, and has reaped a martyr's reward. 

In the management of our foreign relations, as a member of 
Congress, in either branch, as secretary of state, and as commis- 
sioner at Ghent, while he never forgot what was just and liberal to 
other powers, his own country has ever had the preeminent place 
in his affections. All his aims as a public man — and he seems to 
have been born for his country — all his thoughts, all his sacrifices. 



174 MR. CLAY AS AN 

which have not been few or small — have been directed to the ad- 
vancement, the growth, the greatness of the republic. While he 
has constantly sought to protect the industry and develop the 
resources of the country, he has zealously endeavored to cement 
the union by the opening of internal communications, and to im- 
prove harbors and rivers for the benefit of commerce. He who 
surmounts the AUeganies on the national road, as if no hills were 
there, should never forget to whom he is indebted for this luxury 
of travel. 

The war of 1812 was a stern trial of the patriotism, institutions, 
and government of the country ; and it need not be said, that the 
position occupied by Mr. Clay in the origination, conduct, and 
termination of that struggle, was one of great responsibility. No 
man called louder, or did more, or was more influential, in bring- 
ing it about — not indeed for the love of war — for Mr. Clay has 
ever been averse to it — but because of his sense of the wrongs 
and insults of a haughty and imperious rival, who, believing her- 
self queen of the seas by her maritime force, seemed resolved to 
disregard the maritime rights of the United States. She had 
pursued her arrogance beyond endurance, harassed and destroyed 
American commerce for many years, by her violations of neutral 
rights, seized on American seamen by thousands, under the pre- 
text of claiming her own, and forced them to fight her battles. 
The numerous and long-protracted outrages of this and other kinds, 
had made it a question of submission or defence — of abandoning 
or maintaining national sovereignty, on the part of the United 
States. 

The speakership of the house of representatives, which was 
assigned to Mr. Clay during the war of 1812, was the most impor- 
tant post in the nation for such a time ; and it is a remarkable fact, 
that, while it is generally regarded as depriving the incumbent of 
the privilege of participation in its debates, and usually does so in 
its practical operation, Mr. Clay was accustomed, during the many 
years that he was at the head of that body, to mingle in its delib- 
erations, while in committee of the whole, and to perform the 
double duty of speaker and member. It was expected, required 
of him. No other man had so much to do with originating meas- 
ures and sustaining them, while at the same time he presided over 
the body. But he was never more active, nor more influential in 
this field, than during the preparations and progress of the war 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 175 

He was one of the chief counsellors of the president (Mr. Madi- 
son), inspired him with determination and boldness, and animated 
both the executive and legislative branches of the government with 
the spirit which actuated himself. The war to him was a time of 
intense anxiety and intense exertion, from the moment it was 
resolved on, till it was ended. Responsible, in a high degree, for 
its beginning and conduct, he was called to participate in the duty 
and responsibility of concluding the terms of peace, as arranged at 
Ghent. His patriotic exertions in this struggle justly secured for 
him the respect and gratitude of his countrymen, almost without 
distinction of party. A small faction only, that denounced the 
war to the last, refused to acknowledge their obligations to its 
prominent and most influential agents. 

When the darkest clouds hung over the country, during the 
agitation of the Missouri question, and when they seemed about to 
burst in all their fury over the republic, the last hope of those pacific- 
ally disposed, who had tried in vain to still the tempest, turned to Mr. 
Clay, as he made his appearance at a late period of the session of 
1820-21, having been unavoidably detained. It is sufficient 
here to remark, for the object of the present notice, that to Mr. 
Clay, and to him alone, has ever been attributed, without a dis- 
senting voice, the influence, almost superhuman, that quelled this 
storm. Such was the demand on his faculties of mind and body 
for this occasion, and such the responsibility of the position 
awarded to him by common consent, it has been said, and may be 
believed, that the month's agony and eff'ort, by which his moral 
and physical powers were tasked, to settle this question, could not 
have been protracted many days longer, without proving fatal to 
himself. The whole country appreciated his signal services, and 
unanimously gave him the title of the Great Pacificator. 

Again, when in 1833, South Carolina nullification burst forth 
upon the Union, threatening its dissolution, and when General 
Jackson had proclaimed war on the recusants, Mr. Clay made 
peace, and carried the country safely through the trial, by means 
of the compromise act. " I rise, sir, on this occasion," said Mr. 
Clay, when he brought forward the bill, *' actuated by no motives of 
a private nature, by no personal feelings, and for no personal objects ; 
but exclusively in obedience to a sense of the duty which I owe 
to my country. . . I am anxious to find out some principle of mu- 
tual accommodation, to satisfy, as far as practicable, both parties. . . 
As I stand before my God, I declare, I have looked beyond those 



176 MR. CLAY AS AN 

considerations [party feelings and party causes], and regarded only 
the vast interests of this whole people. . . If I had thought of my- 
self, I should never have brought it [the bill] forward. I know 
well the perils, to which I expose myself. . . I might have silently 
gazed on the raging storm, enjoyed its thunders, and left those 
who are charged with the vessel of state, to conduct it as they 
could. . . Pass this bill, tranquilize the country, restore confidence and 
affection in the Union, and I am willing to go home to Ashland, and 
renounce public service for ever. . . I have been accused of ambi- 
tion. Yes, I have ambition ; but it is the ambition of being the 
humble instrument in the hands of Providence to reconcile a di- 
vided people — once more to revive concord and harmony in a dis- 
tracted land — the pleasing ambition of contemplating the glorious 
spectacle of a free, united, prosperous, and fraternal people. ... I 

say, SAVE THE COUNTRY- — SAVE THE UnION SAVE THE 

American system." 

In 1834-'5, the French government and nation had taken of- 
fence at General Jackson's annual message to Congress, which 
recommended reprisals on French commerce, on account of the 
neglect of the French government to pay an instalment, due by 
the treaty of July 4, 1831, as an indemnity for spoliations of 
American commerce, committed between 1800 and 1817. The 
president was in favor of decisive and energetic measures, whereat 
the French were greatly incensed. The lightest breath might have 
kindled war, and the smallest drop might quench the spark. It 
was a point of honor. The failure to pay resulted from a disa- 
greement between the French ministry and the chamber of depu- 
ties, the latter not having made the appropriation requisite for the 
fulfilment of the treaty. The king and his ministers were willing, 
but the deputies were unwilling. Both, however, were offended 
at the tone of General Jackson's message. The senate of the 
United States held in their hand the balances. Whereupon the 
Great Pacificator (Henry Clay) was made chairman of a 
committee to report on this critical affair, which was made and 
read by him on the 6th of January, 1835. His report showed to 
the satisfaction of the senate, that by a little forbearance, in defer- 
ence to the peculiar position of the executive department of the 
French government toward the legislative branch, peace could prob- 
ably be preserved, with honor to both parties. 

Mr. Clay, on this occasion, reported, in behalf of the commit- 
tee, the following resolution : — 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 177 

** Resolved, That it is inexpedient, at this time, to pass any law 
resting in the president authority for making reprisals upon French 
property, in the contingency of provision not being made for pay- 
ing to the United States the indemnity stipulated by the treaty of 
1831, during the present session of the French chambers." 

In Mr. Clay's speech on the report before the senate, he said : — 
"In speculating upon the probabilities in regard to the course 
of the French government, in reference to the treaty, four contin- 
gencies might be supposed to arise — first, that the French cham- 
bers may have made the appropriation to carry the treaty into ef- 
fect before the reception of the president's message; second, the 
chambers may make the appropriation after the reception of the 
president's message, and notwithstanding the recommendation on 
this subject contained in it ; third, the chambers may, in conse- 
quence of that recommendation, hearing of it before they shall 
have acted finally on the subject, refuse to make any appropria- 
tion, until what they may consider a menace, shall have been 
explained or withdrawn ; or, fourth, they may, either on that 
ground, or on the ground of dissatisfaction with the provis- 
ions of the treaty, refuse to pass the bill of appropriation. Now, 
in any of these contingencies, after what has passed, an expres- 
sion of the sense of Congress on the subject appears to be indis- 
pensable, either to the passage of the bill, or to the subsequent 
payment of the money." 

The resolution reported by Mr. Clay was unanimously adopt- 
ed by the senate, and the indemnity was paid, not, however, till — 
to save the feelings of the French, who were a good deal excited 
by President Jackson's course — the controversy was settled 
through the intervention of William IV., king of England. The 
country, on this occasion, was saved from war by the prudent 
counsels of Mr. Clay. 

None will deny, that Mr. Clay was the choice of the whig party 
for the presidential campaign of 1840, or that his public services 
had fairly entitled him to the nomination. But foreseeing that the 
Harrisburg convention might be embarrassed in the selection of 
the candidate for reasons which it is unnecessary here to notice, 
Mr. Clay had written to the Kentucky delegates, in terms to dis- 
charge his friends from any such adherence to him as might tend 
to disturb the harmony of that body, or mar general unanimity in 
supporting its decision. When that decision was finally an- 
nounced, the reading of this letter, the existence of which was 
known to a few, was called for. The following is an extract : — 

" With a just and proper sense of the high honor of being 
voluntarily called to the office of president of the United States, 



178 



MR. CLAY AS AN 



by a great, free, and enlightened people, and profoundly grateful 
to those of my fellow-citizens who are desirous to see me placed 
in that exalted and responsible station, I must nevertheless say, in 
entire truth and sincerity, that, if the deliberations of the conven- 
tion shall lead them to the choice of another as the candidate of 
the opposition, far from feeling any discontent, the nomination shall 
have my best wishes, and receive my cordial support." 

Considering the just claims of Mr. Clay, as universally ac- 
knowledged — but which he would be the last to put forward — and 
what must necessarily have been his motive in his letter, none can 
fail to be deeply impressed with a sense of his magnanimity and pa- 
triotism. Such was the preponderance and force of the popular 
desire for the nomination of Mr. Clay, there is every reason to 
believe, that the summons to the onset of 1840 would have 
failed, if Mr. Clay had not so magnanimously stepped forward, 
at the head of his own legions, to fight the great battle in favor of 
the nominee who had been selected. 

On another occasion Mr. Clay said : — 

"If my name creates any obstacle to cordial union and harmony, 
away with it, and concentrate upon some individual more accepta- 
ble to all branches of the opposition. What is a public man worth 
who is not ready to sacrifice himself for the good of his country ? 
I have unaffectedly desired retirement; I yet desire it, when, con- 
sistently with the duties and obligations which I owe, I can honor- 
ably retire. No veteran soldier, covered with scars and wounds, 
inflicted in many severe battles and hard campaigns, ever received 
his discharge with more pleasure, than I should mine. But I 
think that like him, without presumption, I am entitled to an honor- 
able discharge." 

Mr. Clay opened his great speech on the subtreasury scheme, 
in 1838, as follows: — 

" If you knew, sir, what sleepless hours reflection upon it has 
cost me ; if you knew with what fervor and sincerity I have im- 
plored Divine assistance to strengthen and sustain me in my oppo- 
sition to it, I should have credit with you, at least for the sincerity 
of my convictions, if I shall be so unfortunate as not to have your 
concurrence as to the dangerous character of the measure. And 
I have thanked my God, that he has prolonged my life until the 
present time, to enable me to exert myself in the service of my 
country, against a project far transcending in pernicious tendency 
any that I have ever had occasion to consider. 1 thank him for 
the health I am permitted to enjoy ; I thank him for the soft and 
sweet repose which I experienced last night ; I thank hira for the 
bright and glorious sun which shines upon us this day." 



AMERICAN PATRIOT. 179 

In his speech on Mr. Calhoun's land bill, 1840, he said: — 
** Sir, I am not one of those who are looking out for what may 
ensue to themselves. My course is nearly run ; it is so by nature, 
and so in the progress of political events. I have nothing to ask 
of the senator of the south, nor of South Carolina, nor yet of the 
country at large. But I will go, when I do go, or when I choose 
to go, into retirement, with the undying conviction that, for a quar- 
ter of a century, I have endeavored to serve and to save the coun- 
try, faithfully and honorably, without a view to my own interest, or 
ray own aggrandizement; and of that delightful conviction and con- 
sciousness, no human being, nor all mankind, can ever deprive me." 
In his valedictory to the senate, 1842, he said: — 
" Of the nature or the value of the services rendered durino- the 
long and arduous period of my public life, it does not become me 
to speak; but, whatever errors — and doubtless there have been 
many — may be discovered in a review of them, I can, with unsha- 
ken confidence, appeal to the Searcher of hearts for the truth of 
the declaration, that I have been influenced by no impure purpose, 
no personal motive ; have sought no personal aggpandizement ; but 
that, in all my public acts, I have had a sole and single eye, and 
a warm and devoted heart, directed and dedicated to what, in my 
best judgment, I believed to be the true interests of my country." 

It is impossible but that history should institute a comparison 
between Washington and Clay, as American patriots. It has al- 
ready been done. The former has found his niche in the temple 
of fame, as " first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his 
countrymen," and he can not be dislodged, nor have a rival. The 
whole world have pronounced on the character of Washington as 
one of the best and greatest men that have ever Hved, and that de- 
cision will neither be revoked, nor modified. Henry Clay awaits 
his place in the opinion and regard of his countrymen, and of man- 
kind. That he will not be less respected, or his character less es- 
teemed, by posterity than by contemporaries, is morally certain, in 
consideration of the chastening influence of time, in the abatement 
of enmities, and of the proneness of men to do justice to the vir- 
tues of distinguished individuals of the race, who have passed 
through trials and been abused, and who are no longer in a field 
of competition. It has been said, that, while men live, their faults 
are written in brass, and their virtues in sand. But time throws faults 
out of sight, and emblazons virtue. There were many that tried 
to find fault with Washington. He was even defamed in his life- 
*ime, and it has been said, if he had lived a little longer, he would 
have gone down to his grave broken-hearted — if so great a heart 



180 MR. CLAY AS AN AMERICAN PATRIOT. 

could be broken — for the ingratitude of his countrymen. History 
shows, that a storm was gathering over his head, and his corre- 
spondence evinces, that he was himself advised of the fact. But 
he now rests in peace, and will have no more defamers. 

The difference in character between the public exigencies of the 
times of Washington, and of the times of Henry Clay, and be- 
tween the characters of the two men, is so marked, that a rival 
ship in fame between them, is hardly possible. Justice to each, 
will detract from neither, as the spheres of the two did not even 
border on each other. It has been regretted by some, that Mr. 
Madison's proposal to put Mr. Clay at the head of the American 
army, in the war of 1S12, was not carried into effect, as it is be- 
lieved, that Mr. Clay would have distinguished himself as much 
in the field, as he has done in the senate, and that his prolific ge- 
nius, combined with his personal valor, energy, and command over 
men, would have compelled the foe to terms of peace at an earlier 
period, with less expense and greater honor to the country. It has 
also been suggested, that an epaulet would have carried him into 
the presidency by acclamation, whenever put forward, and thus 
have saved the country from long misrule. 

Speculations of this sort, however, aside, it will probably be 
agreed, that, as in the eighteenth century Washington, by 
his sword gave freedom to America, so in the nineteenth cen- 
tury, Henry Clay was summoned to fight anew the battles of 
freedom, and to illustrate its practical operation in another, loftier, 
and more comprehensive sphere of influence, without derogation 
from the merits of "the father of his country." While the 
sword, not less famed in civil, than in military command, asso- 
ciated with a peerless sagacity, with consummate prudence, and 
with dauntless valor, in war and in peace, is girt to the side of the 
one, to denote his functions; a statesman's laurels, won in long 
and high debate, for the weal of his country and of mankind, and 
not less deserved for unrivalled tact in the management of men, 
crown the head of the other. One cleared the field of tyrants^ 
and aided in erecting the temple of freedom ; the other furnished 
it, and filled its storehouses with wealth. It may be allowed, that 
both were actuated by "that patriotism, which, catching its inspi- 
rations from the immortal God, and leaving at an immeasurable 
distance below, all lesser, grovelling, personal interests and feel- 
ings, animates and prompts to deeds of self-sacrifice, of valor, of 
devotion, and of death itself." 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 181 



CHAPTER IX. 

MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

It is remarkable, that the two great nations of western Europe, 
Great Britain and France, while at war with each other, should 
have presumed, that they could do any amount of injury to the 
rights and commercial interests of the United States with impunity. 
The British blockade of 1806 was followed by the Berlin edicts, 
and the British orders in council by the edicts of Milan, and these 
belUgerent powers made war on the commerce of a friend, the better 
to carry on war between themselves. The United States were made 
the victim of their rapacity. From February 28 to May 20, 1811, 
less than three months, twenty-seven American merchant-vessels were 
sent into British ports, prizes to British cruisers, for violation of 
the orders in council, and the British admiralty courts were con- 
stantly occupied in adjudicating on American property thus brought 
under their jurisdiction, httle of which escaped forfeiture for the 
crime of a neutral commerce, and for attempting to enter ports 
which had no other blockade than parchment orders. At the same 
time that these outrages were committed on American commerce, 
swelling up to millions annually, British manufactures were allowed 
and encouraged to enter, in neutral bottoms, the very ports from 
which American vessels, laden with American produce, were ex- 
cluded, and for having papers of that destination, were captured ! 

But Great Britain, having command of the seas, asserted another 
offensive power, in relation to the United States, to maintain her 
maritime ascendency, by seizing American seamen, on board Ameri- 
can merchantmen, and forcing them into the British navy, under the 
pretence of searching for British subjects, and claiming their services, 
while all parties knew the wrong that was done. The seizure of 
*he property of a neutral power as a belligerent right, and claiming 
it as forfeited, though sufficiently atrocious, was a much less exas- 
perating offence, than that of forcing neutrals to fight the battles of a 
belligerent. France was wrong; Great Britain was more so. The 



182 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OP Ibl!.'. 

former had some magnanimity, when it was convenient to exercise 
It ; while the latter seemed bent on wrong for the love of it. It is 
true, that Great Britain pretended to be fighting for existence, and 
her own vindicators asserted the law of necessity ; but that was 
neither consolation, nor relief, to those whose rights she violated. 

The truth undoubtedly was, that the United States had fallen 
into contempt, and the time had arrived when it was necessary to 
vindicate their rights. The mission of John Henry into New Eng- 
land, in 1809, acting under the instructions of Sir James Craig, 
governor of Canada, with designs against the Union, as proved by 
Mr. Madison's communications to Congress, March 9, 1812, is 
sufficient evidence, that something more than contempt actuated 
the British government in the repeated and aggravated insults and 
injuries done to the government and people of the United States 
for a series of years, naught abated by time and remonstrance, but 
ever on the increase. The conclusion seemed to have been adopt- 
ed in Europe, that, though the United States had fought once, and 
gained their independence, there was no great danger of their fight- 
ing again, though insulted and wronged ; that they might be injured 
to any extent with impunity. What else could account for the 
treatment received from France and Great Britain, especially the 
latter ? Such was the state of things which led to the war of 1812. 

Congress was convoked a month before the regular time in the 
fall of 1811, and the message of President Madison was decidedly 
in the war tone. The winter was spent in notes of preparation, 
and by the 20th of March, Congress had passed, and the presi- 
dent approved, bills of the following titles : To fill up the ranks 
and prolong the enlistment of the army ; to raise an additional reg- 
ular force of 25,000 men ; to raise six companies of mounted ran- 
gers for the defence of the western frontier ; to arm the militia ; to 
authorize detachments of militia ; to fortify the maritime frontier ; 
to repair and fit the entire naval force ; to procure camp-equipage, 
baggage-wagons, &c. ; to purchase ordnance and military stores ; 
to obtain supplies of sulphur and saltpetre ; to make further pro- 
visions for the corps of engineers ; to establish a quartermaster's 
department, and create commissary-generals ; to provide for the 
support of the army and navy ; and to authorize a loan of eleven 
millions. 

In the meantime, there had been a vigorous opposition to these 
measures ; but when, on the 1st of April, Mr. Madison sent in his 
special message, with the documents respecting Henry's mission. 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 



183 



there was a burst of indignant feeling from Congress, and from the 
whole nation, well calculated to unite the country in hostile meas- 
ures. From this time till the declaration of war, on the 19th of 
June, the utmost spirit of preparation was manifested in the legis- 
lative and executive branches of the government, to begin the 
contest. 

The well-known moderation of President Madison's character 
demanded powerful influences, to bring him up to the required 
temper for the responsibilities of this new position as the head of 
the government ; and there was probably but one man who was 
capable, by his extraordinary power over others, of imparting to 
him ^he spirit that was needed for the time. It hardly need be 
said, that he was the speaker of the house of representatives — Mr. 
Clay. By the same cause, Congress was ready for the war before 
the president was. He was still laboring in vain at the oar of ne- 
gotiation with Mr. Foster, the British minister, when an informal 
deputation from the other branch of the government waited upon 
him, with Mr. Clay at their head, and before they retired, the die 
was cast. Nothing remained but the formal act of declaration. 

It may be remarked, that Mr. Clay's feelings in relation to the 
insults and wrongs suffered by the country from Great Britain, 
had been for several years maturing for that course of action which 
he pursued after the struggle commenced, and were on various oc- 
casions, and in sundry forms, publicly expressed — often incident- 
ally. In a speech in the senate, December 25, 1810, in vindica- 
tion of President Madison's occupation of the territory in dispute 
between the United States and Spain, eastward from the Missis- 
sippi to the line of the Perdido, he said : — 

" The gentleman [Mr. Horsey, of Delaware] reminds us, that 
Great Britain, the ally of Spain, may be obliged, by her connexion 
with that country, to take part with her against us, and to consider 
this measure of the president as justifying an appeal to arms. Sir, 
is the time never to arrive, when we may manage our own affairs, 
without the fear of insulting his Britannic majesty ? Is the rod of 
British power to be for ever suspended over our heads ? Does 
Congress put on an embargo to shelter our rightful commerce 
against the piratical depredations committed upon it on the ocean ? 
We are immediately warned of the indignation of offended Eng- 
land. Is a law of non-intercourse proposed ? The whole navy of 
the haughty mistress of the seas is made to thunder in our ears. 
Does the president refuse to continue a correspondence with a 
minister, who violates the decorum belonging to his diplomatic 

Vol. r.— 11 



184 ' MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1612. 

character, by giving and deliberately repeating an affront to the 
whole nation ? We are instandy menaced with the chastisement 
which English pride will not fail to inflict. Whether we assert our 
rights by sea, or attempt their maintenance by land — whithersoever 
we turn ourselves, this phantom incessantly pursues us. Already 
has It had too much influence on the councils of the nation. It 
contributed to the repeal of the embargo — that dishonorable repeal, 
which has so much tarnished the character of our government. 
Mr. President, I have before said on this floor, and now take oc- 
casion to remark, that I most sincerely desire peace and amity with 
England ; that I even prefer an adjustment of all differences with 
her, before one with any other nation. But if she persists in a de- 
nial of justice to us, or if she avails herself of the occupation of 
West Florida, to commence war upon us, I trust and hope that all 
hearts will unite, in a bold and vigorous vindication of our rights." 

Mr. Clay, foreseeing that war with Great Britain was inevitable, 
had declined going into the senate again, and in 1811 was elected 
to the house of representatives, as the more important branch of 
the public service for the occasion. Having made up his mind, 
that war was the only course to vindicate the national honor and 
rights, all his efforts were directed to bring about the final measure, 
from which there could be no retreat, till those rights should be 
acknowledged and respected. Though speaker of the house, op- 
portunities were afforded him, in committee of the whole on the 
state of the Union, to express his sentiments ; and it was in this 
field that he wielded a paramount influence. His addresses in the 
secret sessions, while the question of war was pending, which, as 
represented, were most animating and stirring, are of course lost ; 
and but a few of those delivered in public debate, are extant. 
While the bill to raise an additional regular force of 25,000 men, 
was pending, Mr. Clay addressed the house in committee, on the 
31st of December, 1811. The following are extracts from this 
speech : — 

" Mr. Clay [the speaker] said, that when the subject of this bill 
was before the house in the abstract form of a resolution, proposed 
by the committee of foreign relations, it was the pleasure of the 
house to discuss it while he was in the chair. He did not com- 
plain of this course of proceeding ; for he did not at any time wish 
the house, from considerations personal to him, to depart from that 
mode of transacting the public business which they thought best. 
He merely adverted to the circumstance, as an apology for the 
trouble he was about to give the committee. He was at all times 
disposed to take his share of responsibility, and under this impres- 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. '186 

Bion, he felt that he owed it to his constituents and to himself, be- 
fore the committee rose, to submit to their attention a few observa- 
tions. 

" The difference between those who were for fifteen thousand, 
and those who were for twenty-five thousand men, appeared to him 
to resolve itself into the question, merely, of a short or protracted 
war ; a war of vigor, or a war of languor and imbecility. If a com- 
petent force be raised in the first instance, the war on the continent 
will be speedily terminated. He was aware that it might still rage 
on the ocean. But where the nation could act with unquestion- 
able success, he was in favor of the display of an energy corre- 
spondent to the feelings and spirit of the country. Suppose one 
third of the force he had mentioned (twenty-five thousand men) 
could reduce the country, say in three years, and that the whole 
could accomplish the same object in one year ; taking into view 
the greater hazard of the repulsion and defeat of the small force, 
and every other consideration, do not wisdom and true economy 
equally decide in favor of the larger force, and thus prevent failure 
in consequence of inadequate means ? He begged gentlemen to 
recollect the immense extent of the United States : our vast mari- 
time frontier, vulnerable in almost all its parts to predatory incur 
sions, and he was persuaded, they would see that a regular force, 
of twenty-five thousand men, was not much too great during a pe- 
riod of war, if all designs of invading the provinces of the enemy 
were abandoned. 

" The object of the force, he understood distinctly to be war, and 
war with Great Britain. It had been supposed, by some gentle- 
men, improper to discuss publicly so delicate a question. He 
did not feel the impropriety. It was a subject in its nature inca- 
pable of concealment. Even in countries where the powers of 
government were conducted by a single ruler, it was almost im- 
possible for that ruler to conceal his intentions when he meditates 
war. The assembling of armies, the strengthening of posts — all 
the movements preparatory to war, and which it is impossible to 
disguise, unfolded the intentions of the sovereign. Does Russia 
or France intend war, the intention is almost invariably known 
before the war is commenced. If Congress were to pass a law, 
with closed doors, for raising an army for the purpose of war, its 
enlistment and organization, which could not be done in secret, 
would indicate the use to which it was to be applied ; and we 
can not suppose England would be so blind, as not to see that she 
was aimed at. Nor could she, did she apprehend, injure us more 
by thus knowing our purposes, than if she were kept in ignorance 
of them. She may, indeed, anticipate us, and commence the war. 
But that is what she is in fact doing, and she can add but little to 



186 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

the injury which she is inflicting. If she choose to declare war in 
form, let her do so, the responsibility will be with her." 

The purpose of this measure having been avowed, all the ques- 
tions of expediency in the nation's taking so momentous a step, of 
course came up for consideration, and were required to be solved, 
of which that of the public finances was not among the least. Was 
the nation prepared for the cost ? Asa matter of fact, the foreign 
commerce of the country, and as a consequence the public revenue, 
were almost entirely ruined by the belligerents. The revenue 
had fallen from sixteen millions to six, and it was scarcely possible 
to be worse. The wrongs inflicted on the country by the operation 
of the British orders in council and the French decrees, were not 
only disastrous to the public revenue, but equally so to the interests 
of private individuals, by the seizure, adjudication, and forfeiture 
of their property afloat on the high seas, under plea of a violation 
of those orders and decrees. The business of the country, and the 
wheels of the government, were both in a fair way of being stopped. 
Things, indeed, had come to such a pass, by the operation of these 
causes, that, apart from peril of life and injury to public morals, and 
as a simple question of finance, it was scarcely possible that war 
should not make business, and pay for itself, so far as it respected 
the nation at large, though it should run the government in debt- 
In such a state of things, it could not be worse. 

There was national character, too, honor, a nation's best treasure, 
trampled under foot, and kicked about Europe, as a despicable 
thing. There were thousands of American sailors, forced into the 
British navy, and compelled to fight the battles of the British sov- 
ereign, without remedy, without hope. To the ruin of American 
commerce, were added indignity to the nation by disregarding its 
remonstrances, and the violation of the personal rights of American 
citizens by depriving them of freedom, and forcing them into a ser- 
vice where they owed no allegiance, to the peril of their lives, and 
the destruction of their fortunes — holding them in captivity from 
country, home, and friends. And when the French decrees were 
revoked, as respected American commerce, the British government 
held the American government responsible for their revocation as 
respected all other nations, before they would repeal the orders in 
council ! In view of this state of things, Mr. Clay said : — 

" England is said to be fighting for the world, and shall we, it 
is asked, attempt to weaken her exertions ? If, indeed, the aim 
of the French emperor be universal dominion (and he was willing 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 187 

to allow it to the argument), how much nobler a cause is presented 
to British valor ! But how is her philanthropic purpose to be 
achieved? By a scrupulous observance of the rights of others, 
by respecting that code of public law which she professes to vin- 
dicate, and by abstaining from self-aggrandizement. Then would 
she command the sympathies of the world. What are we re- 
quired to do by those who would engage our feelings and wishes 
in her behalf? To bear the actual cuffs of her arrogance, that we 
may escape a chimerical French subjugation ! We are invited, 
conjured, to drink the potion of British poison, actually presented 
to our lips, that we may avoid the imperial dose prepared by per- 
turbed imaginations. We are called upon to submit to debase- 
ment, dishonor, and disgrace ; to bow the neck to royal insolence, 
as a course of preparation for manly resistance to gallic invasion ! 
What nation, what individual, was ever taught, in the schools of 
ignominious submission, these patriotic lessons of freedom and in- 
dependence ? Let those who contend for this humiliating doc- 
trine, read its refutation in the history of the very man against 
whose insatiable thirst of dominion we are warned. The experi- 
ence of desolated Spain, for the last fifteen years, is worth vol- 
umes. Did she find her repose and safety in subserviency to the 
will of that man ? Had she boldly stood forth and repelled the 
first attempt to dictate to her councils, her monarch would not be 
now a miserable captive in Marseilles. Let us come home to our 
own history : it was not by submission that our fathers achieved 
our independence. The patriotic wisdom that placed you, Mr. 
Chairman, under that canopy, penetrated the designs of a corrupt 
ministry, and nobly fronted encroachment on its first appearance. 
It saw, beyond the petty taxes with which it commenced, a long 
train of oppressive measures, terminating in the total annihilation 
of liberty, and, contemptible as they were, it did not hesitate to 
resist them. Take the experience of the last four or five years, 
which he was sorry to say exhibited, in appearance, at least, a dif- 
ferent kind of spirit. He did not wish to view the past, further 
than to guide us for the future. We were but yesterday contend- 
ing for the indirect trade — the right to export to Europe the cof- 
fee and sugar of the West Indies. To-day we are asserting our 
claim to the direct trade — the right to export our cotton, tobacco, 
and other domestic produce, to market. Yield this point, and to- 
morrow intercourse between New York and New Orleans, between 
the planters on James river and Richmond, will be interdicted. 
For, sir, the career of encroachment is never arrested by submis- 
sion. It will advance while there remains a single privilege on 
which it can operate. Gentlemen say, that this government is 
unfit for any war, but a war of invasion. What, is it not equiva- 
lent to invasion, if the mouths of our harbors and outlets are 
clocked up, and we are denied egress from our own waters ? Or, 



188 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

when the burglar is at our door, shall we bravely sally forth ana 
repel his felonious entrance, or meanly skulk within the cells of 

the castle? 

******** 

♦*He [Mr. Clay] was one, who was prepared (and he would 
not believe that he was more so than any other member of the 
committee) to march on in the road of his duty, at all hazards 
What ! shall it be said, that our amor patria is located at these 
desks ; that we pusillanimously cling to our seats here, rather than 
boldly vindicate the most inestimable rights of the country ? 
While the heroic Daviess, and his gallant associates, exposed to 
all the dangers of treacherous savage warfare, are sacrificing them- 
selves for the good of their country, shall we shrink from our 
duty?" 

When the army-bill was disposed of, a navy-bill came up, 
which, among other objects, proposed to build a blank number of 
frigates. The most important question was the filling up of this 
blank. Mr. Cheves, of South Carolina, moved for the number 
of TEN. Mr. Rhea, of Tennessee, moved to strike out this sec- 
don, which was negatived by a vote of 52 to 47 — a test vote. It 
was during the pendency of Mr. Rhea's motion, that Mr. Clay 
iddressed the committee against it, and in favor of the proposal 
af Mr. Cheves. After a brief introduction, Mr. Clay said : — 

" The attention of Congress has been invited to this subject by 
the president, in his message, delivered at the opening of the ses- 
sion. Indeed, had it been wholly neglected by the chief magis- 
trate, from the critical situation of the country, and the nature of 
the rights proposed to be vindicated, it must have pressed itself 
upon our attention. But, said Mr. Clay, the president, in his 
message, observes : ' Your attention will, of course, be drawn to 
such provisions on the subject of our naval force, as may be re- 
quired for the service to which it is best adapted. I submit to 
Congress the reasonableness, also, of an authority to augment the 
stock of such materials as are imperishable in their nature, or may 
not, at once, be attainable ?' The president, by this recommen- 
dation, clearly intimates an opinion, that the naval force of this 
country is capable of producing effect ; and the propriety of lay- 
ing up imperishable materials, was no doubt suggested for the pur- 
pose of making additions to the navy, as convenience and exi- 
gences might direct. 

" It appeared to Mr. Clay a little extraordinary, that so much, 
as it seemed to him, unreasonable jealousy, should exist against 
the naval establishment. If, said he, we look back to the period 
of the formation of the constitution, it will be found that no such 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 189 

jealousy was then excited. In placing^ the physical force of the 
nation at the disposal of Congress, the convention manifested 
much greater apprehension of abuse in the power given to raise ar- 
mies, than in that to provide a navy. In reference to the navy. Con- 
gress is put under no restrictions ; but with respect to the army, 
that description of force which has been so often employed to 
subvert the liberties of mankind, they are subjected to limitations 
designed to prevent the abuse of this dangerous power. But it 
was not his intention to detain the committee, by a discussion on 
the comparative utility and safety of these two kinds of force. 
He would, however, be indulged in saying, that he thought gen- 
tlemen had wholly failed in maintaining the position they had as- 
sumed, that the fall of maritime powers was attributable to 
their navies. They have told you, indeed, that Carthage, Genoa, 
Venice, and other nations, had navies, and, notwithstanding, were 
finally destroyed. But have they shown, by a train of argument, 
that their overthrow was, in any degree, attributable to their mar- 
itime greatness ? Have they attempted, even, to show that there 
exists in the nature of this power a necessary tendency to destroy 
the nation using it "? Assertion is substituted for argument ; in- 
ferences not authorized by historical facts are arbitrarily drawn ; 
things wholly unconnected with each other are associated together ; 
a very logical mode of reasoning, it must be admitted ! In the 
same way he could demonstrate how idle and absurd our attach- 
ments are to freedom itself. He might say, for example, that 
Greece and Rome had forms of free government, and that they 
no longer exist ; and, deducing their fall from their devotion to 
liberty, the conclusion, in favor of despotism, would very satisfac- 
torily follow ! He demanded what there is in the nature and con- 
struction of maritime power, to excite the fears that have been in- 
dulged ? Do gentlemen really apprehend, that a body of seamen 
will abandon their proper element, and, placing themselves under 
an aspiring chief, will erect a throne to his ambition ? Will they 
deign to listen to the voice of history, and learn how chimerical 
are their apprehensions ? 

" But the source of alarm is in ourselves. Gentlemen fear, 
that if we provide a marine, it will produce collisions with foreign 
nations, plunge us into war, and ultimately overturn the constitu- 
tion of the country. Sir, if you wish to avoid foreign collision, 
you had better abandon the ocean ; surrender all your commerce 
give up all your prosperity. It is the thing protected, not the in- 
strument of protection, that involves you in war. Commerce en- 
genders colUsion, collision war, and war, the argument supposes, 
leads to despotism. Would the counsels of that statesman be 
deemed wise, who would recommend that the nation should be 
unarmed ; that the art of war, the martial spirit, and martial exer- 
cises, should be prohibited ; who should declare, in the language 



190 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

of Othello, that the nation must bid farewell to the neighing steed, 
and the shrill trump, the spirit-stirring drum, the ear-piercing fife, 
and all the pride, pomp, and circumstance of glorious war ; and 
that the great body of the people should be taught, that national 
happiness was to be found in perpetual peace alone ? No, sir. 
And yet, every argument in favor of a power of protection on 
land, applies, in some degree, to a power of protection on the sea. 
Undoubtedly a commerce void of naval protection is more ex- 
posed to rapacity than a guarded commerce ; and if we wish to 
invite the continuance of the old, or the enactment of new edicts, 
let us refrai"" from all exertion upon that element where we must 
operate, and wu :e, in the end, they must be resisted." 

It can not but be seen, that this debate is greatly instructive, not 
alone as it shows the position occupied by Mr. Clay, but as it 
discloses the position of the country, at the time, the views of 
public policy entertained by existing parties, the untried condition 
and ability of the naval force, the want of faith in that arm of the 
public service, and the difficulties which were to be encountered 
in raising it from infancy to manhood, and sending it out boldly to 
assert the rights and exemplify the valor of the nation on the deep. 

It is clear enough, that Mr. Clay, though speaker of the house 
of representatives, and sufficiendy tasked in that capacity, was also 
a leader in debates, and leader of the party disposed to stir up the 
nation to a trial of strength with at least one of the great trans- 
atlantic belligerents, both of which had done such wrongs, and 
offered such insults, to the people and government of the United 
States. The house was accustomed to go into committee — thus 
relieving Mr. Clay from the duties of speaker — for the purpose of 
giving him opportunities to express his views on any pending 
measures, and of availing itself of the benefit of his counsels, 
and of his stirring eloquence. Fresh from the bosom of the patri- 
otic and gallant people of the west, himself not behind in these 
lofty sentiments, animated by the ardor and nerved with the vigor 
of a young statesman, endowed with such faculties of persuasion as 
few men ever possessed, sensitive, not less to public than to private 
honor, thoroughly informed in the foreign relations of the govern- 
ment and the capabilities of the United States, Mr. Clay viewed 
with mortification the position of the country, and looked with 
scorn and indignation at the wrongs and insults of Great Britain 
and France which had placed it there. Unused to arms since the 
national independence was acquired, and that great battle having 
been fought for freedom — for the " lives, fortunes, and sacred honor" 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 191 

of the people — it was a great problem what might be the result of 
a conflict waged on such grounds as were at this time presented, 
and a great responsibility in pushing the nation into it. But the 
alternatives were only two : commercial ruin and national debase- 
ment on the one hand, or bearding the British lion in his den on 
the other. A young nation born into existence by agony from 
which there was no escape, was now to measure weapons with the 
oldest and most powerful empire on earth in defence of its honor. 
The responsibility of a leader in such an enterprise was great. 

Having just come out of the debate on a measure for raising a 
suitable land force, about which all reasonings could be based on 
some tangible probabilities, the navy was a subject which could not 
but be regarded with extreme concern, in a war with " the mistress 
of the seas." And yet it was a subject that must be approached, 
in a preparation for such a war ; and it presented a question that 
must be disposed of. Should the sea be abandoned to the foe, 
and its road to national wealth and greatness be surrendered to the 
sole travel of an arrogant highwayman ? Or should a young na- 
tion, reduced by a visionary policy to gunboat tactics and garrison 
defences, like a chicken on a dunghill defying the hawk that is 
sailing downward on his prey, go out in such a field against such 
odds ? It is no wonder that discouragement, and a feeling like 
dismay, should have pervaded so many minds at the prospect. To 
begin to build a navy, at the moment of going into war with the 
greatest maritime power in the world, was indeed a bold proposal 
— apparently bordering on presumption. But it was a necessity, 
before the face of which patriotism could not flee — a doom which 
national gallantry was forced to encounter. 

Mr. Clay, after answering all objections, which seemed to van- 
ish as he touched them, suggested three hypothetical descriptions 
of naval force for the exigency : One large enough to cope with 
any antagonist, in any sea. That, manifestly, was impracticable. 
Another, consisting of a number of ships, of proper classes, and 
well appointed, sufficient to meet, in the American seas, any force 
that could be spared from the British service at that time, with the 
engagements which Great Britain then had on hand — it being sup- 
posed, that so distant a service as British ships hovering over the 
American coast, would require three to one of a home squadron, 
as not more than one third of the former could be kept constantly 
on the station. This, too, was impracticable. 

A third description of force, therefore, was the only one, which 



192 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

seemed to be within the power of the nation, at that time, to pro- 
vide, to wit, one adequate to afford some protection to the coasting 
trade, defend the harbors and seaports, and occasionally venture 
out to chastise the insolence of any single British ship that might 
show itself. " If," said Mr. Clay, " we are not able to meet the 
wolves of the forest, shall we put up with the barking impudence 
of every petty cur that trips across our path ? Because we can 
not guard against every possible danger, shall we provide against 
none ? I hope not. I had hardly expected, that that instructing, 
but humiliating lesson was so soon to be forgotten, which was 
taught us in the murder of Pearce, the attack on the Chesapeake, 
and the insult offered in the very harbor of Charleston, which the 
brave old fellow who commanded the fort in vain endeavored to 
chastise. It is a rule with me, when acting in a public or private 
character, to attempt nothing more than what there is a prospect 
of accomplishing. I am, therefore, not in favor of entering into 
any mad projects on this subject, but for deliberately and reso- 
lutely pursuing what I believe to be within the power of govern- 
ment." 

The following remarks of Mr. Clay on the importance of foreign 
commerce to the people and government of the country, and on the 
intimate connexion between a commercial and military marine, are 
not more forcibly stated than true : — 

" He considered the prosperity of foreign commerce indissolubly 
allied to marine power. Neglect to provide the one, and you must 
abandon the other. Suppose the expected war with England is 
commenced, you enter and subjugate Canada, and she still refuses 
to do you justice; what other possible mode will remain to oper- 
ate on the enemy, but upon that element where alone you can 
then come in contact with him ? And if you do not prepare to 
protect there your own commerce, and to assail his, will he not 
sweep from the ocean every vessel bearing your flag, and destroy 
even the coasting trade? But, from the arguments of gentlemen, 
it would seem to be questioned, if foreign commerce is worth the 
kind of protection insisted upon. What is this foreign commerce, 
that has suddenly become so inconsiderable ? It has, with very 
trifling aid from other sources, defrayed the expenses of govern- 
ment, ever since the adoption of the present constitution ; main- 
tained an expensive and successful war with the Indians ; a war 
with the Barbary powers ; a quasi war with France ; sustained the 
charges of suppressing two insurrections, and extinguishing up- 
ward of forty-six millions of the public debt. In revenue, it has, 
since the year 1789, yielded one hundred and ninety-one millions 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 193 

«f dollars. During the first four years after the commencement 
of the present government, the revenue averaged only about two 
millions annually; during a subsequent period, of four years, it 
rose to an average of fifteen millions, annually, or became equiv- 
alent to a capital of two hundred and fifty milUons of dollars, at 
an interest of six per centum per annum. And if our commerce 
be reestablished, it will, in the course of time, net a sum for which 
we are scarcely furnished with figures, in arithmetic. Taking the 
average of the last nine years (comprehending, of course, the 
season of the embargo), our exports average upward of thirty- 
seven millions of dollars, which is equivalent to a capital of more 
than six hundred millions of dollars, at six per centum interest ; 
all of which must be lost in the event of a destruction of foreign 
commerce. In the abandonment of that commerce, is also involved 
the sacrifice of our brave tars, who have engaged in the pursuit, 
from which they derive subsistence and support, under the confi- 
dence that government would afford them that just protection 
which is due to all. They will be driven into foreign employment, 
for it is vain to expect that they will renounce their habits of life. 
" The spirit of commercial enterprise, so strongly depicted by 
the gentleman from New York [Mr. Mitchell], is diffused through- 
out the country. It is a passion as unconquerable as any with 
which nature has endowed us. You may attempt, indeed, to reg- 
ulate, but you can not destroy it. It exhibits itself as well on the 
waters of the western country, as on the waters and shores of the 
Atlantic. Mr. Clay had heard of a vessel, built at Pittsburg, hav- 
ing crossed the Atlantic and entered a European port (he believed 
that of Leghorn). The master of the vessel laid his papers before 
the proper customhouse officer, which, of course, stated the place 
of her departure. The officer boldly denied the existence of any 
such American port as Pittsburg, and threatened a seizure of the 
vessel, as being furnished with forged papers. The affrighted 
master procured a map of the United States, and pointing out the 
gulf of Mexico, took the officer to the mouth of the Mississippi, 
traced the course of the Mississippi more than a thousand miles, 
to the mouth of the Ohio, and conducting him still a thousand 
miles higher, to the junction of the Allegany and Monongahela — 
* There,' he exclaimed, ' stands Pittsburg, the port from which I 
sailed!'" 

The efforts of Mr. Clay in Congress, and in all his private rela- 
tions, during this season of preparation for war, were unremitting, 
desiring to go into it with unanimity and vigor, that it might end 
with honor and the achievement of the objects of the conflict. 

When war was declared, the manifest importance of having at 
Ihe head of the army a man of talents, decision, energy, and weighs 



194 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 



of character, notwithstanding Mr. Clay had been trained exclu- 
sively in the civil service, suggested to the mind of President 
Madison, that he was the man, and he had made up his mind to 
send in his name to the senate for the office of major-general. 
Mr. Gallatin — though he and Mr. Clay have never been on the 
best terms — is understood to have said, that he knew of no man so 
prompt and fruitful in expedients for an exigency, as Mr. Clay — a 
qualification, of all others, most important for a military captain. 
This is the universal opinion of his character, and it has been suf- 
ficiently proved. Mr. Madison, doubtless, had made this discov- 
ery, and it is an interesting subject of hypothetical review, what 
would probably have been the result, if Mr. Clay had been put in 
this important and responsible position. None who know the 
man can doubt, that the utmost activity and energy would have 
been displayed in the military operations of the country, and that 
the war might have been brought to a close in half the time and 
at half the expense. What other consequences might have fol- 
lowed in Mr. Clay's civil history, after having worn an epaulet and 
sword, with credit to himself and benefit to his country, is matter 
of innocent conjecture. Mr. Madison, however, was dissuaded 
from his purpose, on the ground, that Mr. Clay's services were 
indispensable in the national councils. The president tendered to 
him the mission to Russia, for important public purposes, after 
the war, and afterward one of the executive departments, both of 
which were declined — doubtless for the reasons which had induced 
him to decline the more elevated and dignified position of a sena- 
tor, for the more useful one of a commoner. Mr. Monroe after- 
ward offered Mr. Clay a secretaryship at home, and a carte blanche 
of all the foreign missions ; but he preferred the house of repre- 
sentatives. 

It is well known, that the first year of the war was not very 
creditable to the American arms, and that it was disheartening to 
the spirit of the country. The opposition in Congress heaped 
upon the administration reproachful censure for having engaged in 
the war, which roused Mr. Clay, not only to its vindication, but 
to some vehement expressions of patriotic indignation. In Janu- 
ary, 1813, a bill was before Congress, to increase the army by 
twenty additional regiments. On the Sth of this month, in com- 
mittee of the whole, Mr. Clay noticed these attacks on the govern- 
ment, and replied to some invectives on the merits of the war. 

In recording the services of a statesman, in peace or war, he is 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 195 

to be represented in the field which he occupies, or in which he 
enacts his part. The roar of artillery and the clash of steel are 
not in the senate of a nation ; but there are battles even there. 
The statesman who sways the councils of his country, by his wis- 
dom and eloquence, occupies a position more lofty and more com- 
mandmg, than any other public agent. Armies are raised and 
moved, and fleets scour the seas, for pacific functions, or in search 
of the foe, under his orders. He is forced to look on all at home, 
and all abroad— to secure, protect, and vindicate domestic inter- 
ests and rights, against foreign policies and foreign aggressions. 
His tent is the canopy of heaven, and his field the world He 
fights in war, and fights in peace. There is no repose for him 
who guards with vigilance and fidelity the public weal. 

The position which Mr. Clay occupied in the war of 1812, was 
eminent. That he had been eminently influential in its inception 
and in committmg the nation to the hazard, could not be unknown • 
and m view of the adverse events of its early history, the oppo- 
nents of the war and of the administration fell heavily upon him 
who had been so active in bringing it about. He thus replies :— 
" Sir, gentlemen appear to me to forget, that they stand on 
American soil ; that they are not in the British house of commons, 
but in the chamber of the house of representatives of the United 
t>tates ; that we have nothing to do with the afiairs of Europe, the 
partition of territory and sovereignty there, except so far a? these 
things affect the mterests of our own country. Gentlemen trans- 
form themselves into the Burkes, Chathams, and Pitts, of another 
countiy, and forgetting, from honest zeal, the interests of America, 
engage with European sensibility in the discussion of European 
mterests. If gentlemen ask me, whether I do not view with 
regret and horror the concentration of such vast power in the hands 

r^ \'PfJ-'' ^ '^&: '^^' ^ ^°- I '^S'^' ^« «ee the emperor of 
Ohina holdmg such immense sway over the fortunes of millions 
ot our species. I regret to see Great Britain possessing so uncon- 
tro led a command over all the waters of our globe. If I had the 
ability to distribute among the nations of Europe their several por- 
ihnnlH K^""""' '"^ ""! sovereignty, I would say, that Holland 
tZtu '^'""l^^^'^^^ fd given the weight she enjoyed in the 
days of her De Witts. I would confine France within her natural 
boundaries, the Alps, Pyrenees, and the Rhine, and make her a 
secondary naval power only. I would abridge the British mari- 
time power, raise Prussia and Austria to their original condition, 
and preserve the integrity of the empire of Russia. But these are 
speculations. I look at the political transactions of Europe, with 
the single exception of their possible bearing upon us, as I do at the 



196 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

history of other countries, or other times. I do not survey them 
with half the interest that I do the movements in South America. 
Our poHtical relation with them is much less important than it is 
supposed to be. I have no fears of French or English subjuga- 
tion. If we are united we are too powerful for the mightiest nation 
in Europe, or all Europe combined. If we are separated and torn 
asunder, we shall become an easy prey to the weakest of them. 
In the latter dreadful contingency, our country will not be worth 
preserving. 

" Next to the notice which the opposition has found itself called 
upon to bestow upon the French emperor, a distinguished citizen 
of Virginia, formerly president of the United States, has never for 
a moment failed to receive their kindest and most respectful atten- 
tion. An honorable gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. Quincy], 
of whom I am sorry to say, it becomes necessary for me, in the 
course of my remarks, to take some notice, has alluded to him in 
a remarkable manner. Neither his retirement from public office, 
his eminent services, nor his advanced age, can exempt this patriot 
from the coarse assaults of party malevolence. No, sir. In 1801, 
he snatched from the rude hand of usurpation the violated consti- 
tution of his country, and that is his crime. He preserved that 
instrument, in form, and substance, and spirit, a precious inheri- 
tance for generations to come, and for this he can never be for- 
given. How vain and impotent is party rage, directed against such 
a man ! He is not more elevated by his lofty residence, upon the 
summit of his own favorite mountain, than he is lifted, by the 
serenity of his mind, and the consciousness of a well-spent life, 
above the malignant passions and bitter feelings of the day. No ! 
his own beloved Monticello is not less moved by the storms that 
beat against its sides, than is this illustrious man, by the bowlings 
of the whole British pack, set loose from the Essex kennel ! 
When the gentleman to whom I have been compelled to allude, 
shall have mingled his dust with that of his abused ancestors, 
when he shall have been consigned to oblivion, or, if he lives at 
all, shall live only in the treasonable annals of a certain junto, the 
name of Jefferson will be hailed with gratitude, his memory hon- 
ored and cherished as the second founder of the liberties of the 
people, and the period of his administration will be looked back 
to, as one of the happiest and brightest epochs of American his- 
tory — an oasis in the midst of a sandy desert. But I beg the 
gentleman's pardon ; he has indeed secured to himself a more 
imperishable fame than I had supposed : I think it was about four 
years ago that he submitted to the house of representatives, an 
initiative proposition for the impeachment of Mr. Jefferson. The 
house condescended to consider it. The gentleman debated it with 
his usual temjter, moderation, and urbanity. The house decided 
upon it in the most solemn manner, and, although the gentleman 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 197 

had some how obtained a second, the final vote stood, one for 
and one hundred and seventeen against, the proposition ! 

" But, sir, I must speak of another subject, which I never think 
of but with feeUngs of the deepest awe. The gentleman from 
Massachusetts, in imitation of some of his predecessors of 1799, 
has entertained us with a picture of cabinet plots, presidential 
plots, and all sorts of plots, which have been engendered by the 
diseased state of the gentleman's imagination. I wish, sir, that 
another plot, of a much more serious and alarming character — a 
plot that aims at the dismemberment of our Union — had only the 
same imaginary existence. But no man, who has paid any atten- 
tion to the tone of certain prints, and to transactions in a particular 
quaiter of the Union, for several years past, can doubt the existence 
of such a plot. It was far, very far from my intention to charge 
the opposition with such a design. No, I believe them generally 
incapable of it. But I can not say as much for some, who have 
been unworthily associated with them in the quarter of the Union 
to which I have referred. The gendeman can not have forgotten 
his own sentiment, uttered even on the floor of this house, ' peace- 
ably if we can, forcibly if we must,' nearly at the very time 
Henry's mission to Boston was undertaken. The flagitiousness 
of that embassy had been attempted to be concealed, by directing 
the public attention to the price which, the gentleman says, was 
given for the disclosure. As if any price could change the atro- 
ciousness of the attempt on the part of Great Britain, or could 
extenuate, in the slightest degree, the offence of those citizens, who 
entertained and deliberated upon a proposition so infamous and 
unnatural ! There was a most remarkable coincidence between 
some of the things which that man states, and certain events in the 
quarter alluded to. In the contingency of war with Great Britain, 
it will be recollected, that the neutrality and eventual separation 
of that section of the Union was to be brought about. How, sir, 
has it happened, since the declaration of war, that British officers 
in Canada have asserted to American officers, that this very neu- 
trality would take place? That they have so asserted, can be 
established beyond controversy. The project is not brought for- 
ward openly, with a direct avowal of the intention. No, the stock 
of good sense and patriotism in that portion of the country is too 
great to be undisguisedly encountered. It is assailed from the 
masked batteries of friendship, of peace and commerce, on the one 
side, and by the groundless imputation of opposite propensities on 
the other. The affections of the people, there, are gradually to 
be undermined. The project is suggested or withdrawn ; the dia- 
bolical dramatis •persona, in this criminal tragedy, make their 
appearance or exit, as the audience, to whom they address them- 
selves, applaud or condemn. I was astonished, sir, in reading lately 



198 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812 

a letter, or pretended letter, published in a prominent print in that 
quarter, and written, not in the fervor of party zeal, but coolly and 
dispassionately, to find that the writer affected to reason about a 
separation, and attennpted to demonstrate its advantages to the 
different portions of the Union — deploring the existence now of 
what he terms prejudices against it, but hoping for the arrival of 
the period when they shall be eradicated. But, sir, I will quit 
this unpleasant subject. 

" The war was declared, because Great Britain arrogated to 
herself the pretension of regulating our foreign trade, under the 
delusive name of retaliatory orders in council — a pretension by 
which she undertook to proclaim to American enterprise, ' thus 
far shalt thou go, and no further' — orders which she refused to 
revoke, after the alleged cause of their enactment had ceased ; 
because she persisted in the practice of impressing American 
seamen ; because she had instigated the Indians to commit hostili- 
ties against us ; and because she refused indemnity for her past 
injuries upon our commerce. I throw out of the question other 
wrongs. The war in fact was announced, on our part, to meet the 
war which she was waging on her part. So undeniable were the 
causes of the war, so powerfully did they address themselves to the 
feelings of the whole American people, that when the bill was 
pending before this house, gentlemen in the opposition, although 
provoked to debate, would not, or could not, utter one syllable 
against it. It is true, they wrapped themselves up in sullen silence, 
pretending they did not choose to debate such a question in secret 
session. While speaking of the proceedings on that occasion, I 
oeg to be admitted to advert to another fact which transpired — 
an important fact, material for the nation to know, and which I 
have often regretted had not been spread upon our journals. My 
honorable colleague [Mr. McKee] moved, in committee of the 
whole, to comprehend France in the war ; and when the question 
was taken upon the proposition, there appeared but ten votes in 
support of it, of whom, seven belonged to this side of the house, 
and three only to the other ! It is said, that we were inveigled into 
the war by the perfidy of France ; and that, had she furnished the 
document in time, which was first published in England, in May 
last, it would have been prevented. 1 will concede to gentlemen 
everything they ask about the injustice of France toward this 
country. I wish to God that our ability was equal to our disposi- 
tion, to make her feel the sense that we entertain of that injustice. 
The manner of the publication of the paper in question, was, 
undoubtedly, extremely exceptionable. But I maintain, that, had 
it made its appearance earlier it would not have had the effect sup- 
posed ; and the proof lies in the unequivocal declarations of the 
British government. I will trouble you, sir, with going no further 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 199 

back than to the letters of the British minister, addressed to the 
secretary of state, just before the expiration of his diplomatic 
ftinctions. It will be recollected by the committee, that he exhib- 
ited to this government a despatch from Lord Castlereagh, in which 
the principle was distinctly avowed that, to produce the effect of a 
repeal of the orders in council, the French decrees must be ab- 
solutely and entirely revoked as to all the world, and not as to 
America alone. A copy of that despatch was demanded of him, 
and he very awkwardly evaded it. But on the tenth of June, after 
the bill declaring war had actually passed this house, and was 
pending before the senate (and which, I have no doubt, was 
known to him), in a letter to Mr. Monroe, he says : ' I have no 
hesitation, sir, in saying, that Great Britain, as the case has hither- 
to stood, never did, and never could, engage, without the greatest 
injustice to herself and her allies, as well as to other neutral nations, 
to repeal her orders as affecting America alone, leaving them in 
force against other states, upon condition that France would 
except, singly and specially, America from the operation of her 
decrees.' On the fourteenth of the same month, the bill still pend- 
ing before the senate, he repeats : ' I will now say, that I feel en- 
tirely authorized to assure you, that if you can, at any time, pro- 
duce ^full and U7iconditional repeal of the French decrees, as you 
have a right to demand it, in your character of a neutral nation, 
and that it be disengaged from any question concerning our mari- 
time rights, we shall be ready to meet you with a revocation of the 
orders in council. Previously to your producing such an instru- 
ment, which I am sorry to see you regard as unnecessary, you 
can not expect of us to give up our orders in council.' Thus, 
sir, you see, that the British government would not be content with 
a repeal of the French decrees as to us only. But the French 
paper in question was such a repeal. It could not, therefore, sat- 
isfy the British government. It could not, therefore, have induced 
that government, had it been earlier promulgated, to repeal the or- 
ders in council. It could not, therefore, have averted the war. The 
withholding of it did not occasion the war, and the promulgation 
of it would not have prevented the war. But gendemen have 
contended, that, in point of fact, it did produce a repeal of the 
orders in council. This I deny. After it made its appearance in 
England, it was declared by one of the British ministry in parlia- 
ment, not to be satisfactory. And all the world knows, that the 
repeal of the orders in council resulted from the inquiry, reluctantly 
acceded to by the ministry, into the effect upon their manufactur- 
ing establishments, of our non-importation law, or to the warlike 
attitude assumed by this government, or to both. 
• ♦*#**»» 

" It IS not to the British principle [of allegiance], objectiona- 
ble as it is, that we are alone to look ; it is to her practice ; no 
Vol. L— 12 



200 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

matter what guise she puts on. It is in vain to assert the invio- 
lability of the obligation of allegiance. It is in vain to set up the 
plea of necessity, and to allege that she can not exist, without the 
impressment of her seamen. The naked truth is, she comes, by 
her press-gangs, on board of our vessels, seizes our native as well 
as naturalized seamen, and drags them into her service. It is the 
case, then, of the assertion of an erroneous principle, and of a 
practice not conformable to the asserted principle — a principle, 
which, if it were theoretically right, must be for ever practically 
wrong — a practice which can obtain countenance from no princi- 
ple whatever, and to submit to which, on our part, would betray 
the most abject degradation. We are told, by gentlemen in the 
opposition, that government has not done all that was incumbent 
on it to do, to avoid just cause of complaint on the part of Great 
Britain ; that in particular the certificates of protection, authorized 
by the act of 1796, are fraudulently used. Sir, government has 
done too much in granting those paper protections. I can never 
think of them without being shocked. They resemble the passes 
which the master grants to his negro slave — ' Let the bearer, Mungo, 
pass and repass without molestation.' What do they imply ? 
That Great Britain has a right to seize all who are not provided 
with them. From their very nature, they must be liable to abuse 
on both sides. If Great Britain desires a mark, by which she 
can know her own subjects, let her give them an ear-mark. The 
colors that float from the mast-head should be the credentials of 
our seamen. There is no safety to us, and the gentlemen have 
shown it, but in the rule, that all who sail under the flag (not be- 
ing enemies) are protected by the flag. It is impossible that this 
country should ever abandon the gallant tars, who have won for 
us such splendid trophies. Let me suppose that the genius of 
Columbia should visit one of them in his oppressor's prison, and 
attempt to reconcile him to his forlorn and wretched condition. 
She would say to him, in the language of gentlemen on the other 
side : ' Great Britain intends you no harm ; she did not mean to 
impress you, but one of her own subjects ; having taken you by 
mistake, I will remonstrate, and try to prevail upon her, by peacea- 
ble means, to release you ; but I can not, my son, fight for you.' 
If he did not consider this mere mockery, the poor tar would ad- 
dress her judgment, and say : ' You owe me, my country, protec- 
tion : I owe you, in return, obedience. I am no British subject ; I 
am a native of old Massachusetts, where lived my aged father, my 
wife, my children. I have faithfully discharged my duty. Will 
you refuse to do yours ?' Appealing to her passions he would con- 
tinue : * I lost this eye in fighting under Truxton, with the Insur- 
gente ; I got this scar before Tripoli ; I broke this leg on board 
the Constitution, when the Guerriere struck.' If she remained 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 201 

Btill unmoved, he would break out in the acceUs of mingled disH 
tress and despair, 

" ' Hard, hard is my fate ! once I freedom enjoyed, 
Was as happy as happy could be ! 
Oh ! how hard is my fate, how galling these chains ? 

I will not imagine the dreadful catastrophe to which he would be 
driven by an abandonment of him to his oppressor. - It will not 
be, it can not be, that his country will refuse him prote^-^tion." 

Having shown by documentary evidence, that there ^vas noth- 
ing in the alleged repeal of the British orders in cv^uncil that 
could constitute a ground of pacification, Mr. Clay proceeded to 
the consideration of other points of attack from the >pposition. 
The focus of the fires that were poured in, he sent back his scorch- 
ing flames on the assailants of the administration. "When they 
averred, that those most interested in impressment, were most op- 
posed to the war, he taunted this lack of humanity, and pointed to 
the sympathy of the west, to shame them for such an avowal. He 
could not believe they would so libel themselves, or that they had 
done justice to their constituents. Did not the latter sympathize 
with their western brethren exposed to the Indian tomahawk ? 
No matter whether an American citizen seeks subsistence amid 
the dangers of the deep, or draws it from the bowels of the earth, 
or from agriculture, or from the humblest occupations of mechanic 
life — whatever be his vocation — the rights of an American free- 
man are sacred, and when assailed, all hearts should unite, and 
every arm be braced, to vindicate his cause. But the rights of sea- 
men, who brave the hardships and perils of the deep, in bold adven- 
ture for the common good as well as for their own personal advantage, 
are especially sacred. 

Continuing in this sarcastic vein, well provoked, Mr. Clay said : — 

"When the administration was striving, by the operation of 
peaceful measures, to bring Great Britain back to a sense of jus- 
tice, they were for old-fashioned war. And now they have got 
old-fashioned war, their sensibilities are cruelly shocked, and all 
their sympathies lavished upon the harmless inhabitants of the ad- 
joining provinces. What does a state of war present? The uni- 
ted energies of one people arrayed against the combined energies 
of another; a conflict in which each party aims to inflict all the 
injury it can, by sea and land, upon the territories, property, and 
citizens of the other — subject only to the rules of mitigated war, 
practised by civilized nations. The gentleman would not touch 
the continental provinces of the enemy, nor, I presume, for the 
same reason, her possessions in the West Indies. The same hu 



202 MR. OLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

mane spirit would*s spare the seamen and soldiers of the enemy. 
The sacred per/^^jn of his majesty must not be attacked ; for the 
learned gentlen en, on the other side, are quite familiar with the 
maxim, that tl|^ king can do no wrong. Indeed, sir, I know of no 
person on vvliom we may make war, upon the principles of the 
honorable gfcntleman, but Mr. Stephen, the celebrated author of 
the orders \^i council, or the board of admiralty, who authorize and 
regulate tlvi) practice of impressment! 

" The disasters of the war admonish us, we are told, of the ne- 
cessity of ^terminating the contest. If our achievements by land 
have beer>, less splendid than those of our intrepid seamen by 
water, it is,£iot because the American soldier is less brave. On the 
one elemtfiit, organization, discipline, and a thorough knowledge 
of their duties, exist, on the part of the officers and their men. 
On the other, almost everything is yet to be acquired. We have, 
however, the consolation that our country abounds with the richest 
materials, and that in no instance, when engaged in action, have 
our arms been tarnished. At Brownstown and at Queenstown, 
the valor of veterans was displayed, and acts of the noblest hero- 
ism were performed. It is true, that the disgrace of Detroit re- 
mains to be wiped oflf. That is a subject on which I can not trust 
my feelings ; it is not fitting I should speak. But this much I will 
say, it was an event which no human foresight could have antici- 
*pated, and for which the administration can not be justly censured. 
It was the parent of all the misfortunes we have experienced on 
land. But for it, the Indian war would have been, in a great 
measure, prevented or terminated; the ascendency on Lake Erie 
acquired, and the war pushed on, perhaps to Montreal. With the 
exception of that event, the war, even upon the land, has been at- 
tended by a series of the most brilliant exploits." 

Fortunately for the country, the labors of Mr. Clay and his co- 
adjutors, were not in vain. The navy, on the Atlantic and on the 
lakes, earned for itself an imperishable fame, and demonstrated, to 
the full conviction of the American people — a most desirable result 
— the vast importance of sustaining and rendering efficient this arm 
of the national strength. The army nobly retrieved its character, 
and the war was ended in the full blaze of the victory of New Or- 
leans, January 8, 1815. The recital of military history, is another 
function from that of recording the deeds of statesmen, and that of 
the war of 1812 claims the attention of an able hand. It is under- 
stood, while the author is writing this chapter, to be in progress. 
The spirit of Mr. Clay, as cherished throughout that war, is 
perhaps well exemplified in the following passage : — 

" An honorable peace is attainable only by an efficient war. 
My plan would be, to call out the ample resources of the country. 



MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 203 

give them a judicious direction, prosecute the war with the utmost 
vigor, strike wherever we can reach the enemy, at sea or on land, 
and negotiate the terms of a peace at Quebec or at HaHfax. We 
are told, that England is a proud and lofty nation, which, disdain- 
ing to wait for danger, meets it half way. Haughty as she is, we 
once triumphed over her, and, if we do not listen to the counsels 
of timidity and despair, we shall again prevail. In such a cause, 
with the aid of Providence, we must come out crowned with suc- 
cess ; but if we fail, let us fail like men, lash ourselves to our gal- 
lant tars, and expire together in one common struggle, fighting for 

FREE TRADE AND SEAMEN's RIGHTS." 

"Free trade and seamen's rights." — There can not, 
perhaps, be a better place than this to intimate, what advantage 
has been taken of this expression, "free trade," so deeply plant- 
ed in the passions, in the heart, of the American people, to 
pervert it from its original meaning, and in applying it to an- 
other question. "Free trade and sailors' rights," was one of the 
most powerful popular appeals, before and during the war of 1812 ; 
and it will be seen, from the use of "free trade" in this place, by 
Mr. Clay, that it related to the right of search and impressment, 
as asserted by the British government, as it was at that time prac- 
tised on American seamen, and thus became one of the chief 
causes of the war; and that " free trade" then meant the right to 
sail on the great highway of nations, in the pursuits of commerce, 
without question, without interruption, and without "visit," by a 
foreign power. This was the kind of "free trade" contended for 
in the war of 1812. But the expression has more recently been 
used in the debates on the protective policy, to mean a very differ- 
ent thing ; and yet more than half the people, perhaps, think it 
means the same thing, and are therefore attached to it. They 
fought for it once — why not fight for it now? It is obviously un- 
fair to take advantage of such a feeling, when the people would as 
soon fight against " free trade" as it is now used, if they under- 
stood it, as they fought for it in the sense it was used thirty years 
ago. This is one of the instances in which words are things. It 
will probably take half a century to eradicate the original meaning 
of this phrase from the American mind, and substitute the present. 
By/ree trade most people still understand/a^V trade, whereas, as a 
technical phrase in political economy, as now employed, it means 
directly the opposite. Hence the undesirableness of converting 
scientific technicalities into popular uses, it being so difficult, next 



204 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

to impossible, to make the people understand them. As in the 
application of the word " democrat" to one party, that party has 
all the advantage, and the other all the disadvantage. 

The brief sketch of Mr. Clay's career, given in this chapter, is 
a fair exhibit of the position which he occupied during the war 
of IS 12. The government embarked in the contest in the midst 
of powerfully-conflicting opinions, as to the necessity, propriety, 
or expediency of so momentous a step. The administration was 
vigorously, not to say violently, assailed from where it had need 
and some claims for encouragement and support. The first stages 
of the war were disastrous, and gave great advantage, both to the 
enemy and to domestic opposition. But the brilliant achievements 
of its later stages, and the final result, put the whole matter in a 
new and different light ; and the lapse of thirty years has served 
only to impart additional validity to a general conviction enter- 
tained at the close of the war, that the nation acquired by that 
struggle very important benefits and needful advantages. It was 
rescued from contempt, and elevated to a proud position. 

The part borne by Mr. Clay in that trying period, adds not less 
to his claims on the gratitude of the country, than to the blaze of 
his reputation. At one time portraying, in manly terms, and with 
burning indignation, the insults and injuries of the foe ; at another 
remonstrating with domestic opponents ; then addressing himself, 
in the manner of the discharge of his patriotic duties, to the whole 
American people, he disarmed opposition, chased away the fears 
of the timid, imparted fresh courage to the strong, and stood by 
the government, himself eminent and influential in its counsels, 
both in the origination and conduct of the war. The influence he 
wielded over the moral, and in that way, over the physical power 
of the country, was commanding. His animating spirit, his stir- 
ring eloquence, his useful counsels, and his untiring agency, from 
the position he occupied, were everywhere felt, and equally bene- 
ficial, in the army and navy, to incite them to deeds of valor and 
of victory, as in the presiding magistracy of the nation, to give it 
constancy, and nerve it with vigor. By his comprehensive states- 
manship, by his timely advice, and by his persuasions, the resour- 
ces of the country started from repose, were put in effective action, 
and the nation, though it went into the contest under the greatest 
disadvantages, and was sometimes disheartened, was in the end 
victorious, and prepared to demand honorable peace. 



MB. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 205 

The part of duty assigned to Mr. Clay in the negotiations of 
Ghent, and the manner of its discharge, has already been noticed. 
On his return to the United States, and to Lexington, after the 
peace, his fellow-citizens gave him a public dinner, where the fol- 
lowing sentiment, among others, was read : " Our able nego- 
tiators AT Ghent : Their talents and diplomacy have kept 
pace with the valor of our arms, in demonstrating to the enemy 
that these states will be free." 

To which Mr. Clay replied : — 

" I feel myself called on, by the sentiment just expressed, to re- 
turn my thanks, in behalf of my colleagues and myself. I do not, 
and am quite sure they do not, feel, that, in the service alluded to, 
they are at all entitled to the compliment which has been paid 
them. We could not do otherwise than reject the demand made 
by the other party ; and if our labors finally terminated in an hon- 
orable peace, it was owing to causes on this side of the Atlantic, 
and not to any exertion of ours. Whatever diversity of opinion 
may have existed as to the declaration of the war, there are some 
points on which all may look back with proud satisfaction, The 
first relates to the time of the conclusion of the peace. Had it 
been made immediately after the treaty of Paris, we should have 
retired humiliated from the contest, believing that we had escaped 
the severe chastisement with which we were threatened, and that 
we owed to the generosity and magnanimity of the enemy, what 
we were incapable of commanding by our arms. That magna- 
nimity would have been the theme of every tongue, and of every 
press, abroad and at home. We should have retired, unconscious 
of our own strength, and unconscious of the utter inability of the 
enemy, with his whole undivided force, to make any serious im- 
pression upon us. Our military character, then in the lowest state 
of degradation, would have been unretrieved. Fortunately for us, 
Great Britain chose to try the issue of the last campaign. And 
that has demonstrated, in the repulse before Baltimore, the retreat 
from Plattsburgh, the hard-fought action on the Niagara frontier, 
and in that most glorious day, the eighth of January, that we have 
always possessed the finest elements of military composition, and 
that a proper use of them, only, was necessary, to insure for the 
army and militia a fame as imperishable as that which the navy had 
previously acquired. 

" Another point, which appears to me to afford the highest con- 
solation, is, that we fought the most powerful nation, perhaps, in 
existence, singlehanded and alone, without any sort of alliance. 
More than thirty years had Great Britain been maturing her physi- 
cal means, which she had rendered as efficacious as possible, by 
skill, by discipline, and by actual service. Proudly boasting of 



206 MR. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 

the conquest of Europe, she vainly flattered herself with the easy 
conquest of America also. Her veterans were put to flight or de- 
feated, while all Europe — I mean the governments of Europe — 
was gazing with cold indifference, or sentiments of positive hatred 
of us, upon the arduous contest. Hereafter no monarch can as- 
sert claims of gratitude upon us, for assistance rendered in the hour 
of danger. 

" There is another view of which the subject of the war is fairly 
susceptible. From the moment that Great Britain came forward 
at Ghent with her extravagant demands, the war totally changed 
its character. It became, as it were, a new war. It was no longer 
an American war, prosecuted for redress of British aggressions 
upon American rights, but became a British war, prosecuted for 
objects of British ambition, to be accompanied by American sacri- 
fices. And what were those demands ? Here, in the immediate 
neighborhood of a sister state and territories, which were to be made 
in part the victims, they must have been felt, and their enormity 
justly appreciated. They consisted of the erection of a barrier be- 
tween Canada and the United States, to be formed by cutting off 
from Ohio and some of the territories a country more extensive 
than Great Britain, containing thousands of freemen, who were to 
be abandoned to their fate, and creating a new power, totally un- 
known upon the continent of America ; of the dismantling of our 
fortresses, and naval power on the lakes, with the surrender of the 
military occupation of those waters to the enemy, and of an ar- 
rondissement for two British provinces. These demands, boldly 
asserted, and one of them declared to be a sine qua non, were 
finally relinquished. Taking this view of the subject, if there be 
loss of reputation by either party, in the terms of peace, who has 
sustained it? 

" The effects of the war are highly satisfactory. Abroad, our 
character, which at the time of its declaration was in the lowest 
state of degradation, is raised to the highest point of elevation. It 
is impossible for any American to visit Europe, without being sen- 
sible of this agreeable change, in the personal attentions which he 
receives, in the praises which are bestowed on our past exertions, 
and the predictions which are made as to our future prospects. At 
home, a government, which, at its formation, was apprehended by 
its best friends, and pronounced by its enemies, to be incapable of 
standing the shock, is found to answer all the purposes of its insti- 
tution. In spite of the errors which have been committed (and 
errors have undoubtedly been committed), aided by the spirit and 
patriotism of the people, it is demonstrated to be as competent to 
the objects of effective war, as it has been before proved to be to 
the concerns of a season of peace. Government has thus acquired 
streniTth and confidence. Our prospects for the future, are of the 
brightest kind. With every reason to count on the permanence 



MB. CLAY AND THE WAR OF 1812. 207 

of peace, it remains only for the government to determine upon 
military and naval establishments adapted to the growth and exten- 
sion of our country and its rising importance, keeping in view a 
gradual, but not burdensome, increase of the navy ; to provide for 
the payment of the interest, and the redemption of the public debt, 
and for the current expenses of government. For all these objects, 
the existing sources of the revenue promise not only to be abun- 
dantly sufficient, but will probably leave ample scope to the exer- 
cise of the judgment of Congress, in selecting for repeal, modifica- 
tion, or abolition, those which may be found most oppressive, in- 
convenient, or unproductive." 

It is not easy to estimate the importance of the public functions 
discharged by Mr. Clay in that period of American history com- 
prehended in the war of 1812, and in bringing about an honorable 
and lasting peace. He was then only a young man, but pre-emi- 
nent in influence — an influence earned by toil, and justly awarded 
to talent. Devotion to country, worthy of a better age, seems to 
have been the mainspring of nis exertions. None can deny that 
he was equal to every exigency that arose in the domestic condi- 
tion of the United States, and in the foreign relations of the gov- 
ernment. He enjoyed a pre-eminent share of the confidence of 
Congress, of the executive branch of the government, and of the 
whole country; nor has the bitterest of his enemies ever presumed 
to say, that he abused it. Mr. Clay was never a man to abuse 
faith, public or private ; but, when forced, in the discharge of his 
duties, to avail himself of it, he has used it most charily. With 
all the boldness of character that has sometimes been ascribed to 
him, personal diffidence has aiways tempered his conduct, and 
circumscribed the energy of his mtellectual and moral powers within 
the limits of a cautious prudence. For intrepidity of enterprise, no 
man, naturally, ever exceeded him ; and for discretion, few have 
ever rivalled him. 



208 MP CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVEEF. 



CHAPTER X. 

MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

It will be incumbent on those vvno would correctly view 
and rightly represent Mr. Clay, on domestic slavery, to distin- 
guish between his feelings as a man, and his principles as a 
statesman. It is elsewhere remarked in these pages, that, with 
Mr. Clay, acting in the capacity of a statesman, the law is the 
gospel. He has doubtless ever been aware — as sensible men 
must be — that all human institutions are imperfect ; as with sen- 
sible men, it may be presumed to have been a maxim with him, 
that human institutions, such as they are, should generally be used, 
to improve themselves, and to make better. Not that revolu- 
tion is in no case justifiable ; for the United States owe their 
existence, as an independent nation, to an act of this kind ; but, 
that revolution, in itself considered, is not only undesirable, but 
perilous, and should be resorted to only in extremities, as in the 
case of the declaration of American independence. The consti- 
tution and the laws are usually the only safe guide of a patri- 
otic statesman. In the United States, it is safe to say, they are 
absolutely and unqualifiedly so. They may be, they are doubt- 
less, imperfect ; but they have cost too much, and are too valua- 
ble, too important, to be lightly dealt with ; and they contain the 
elements, provisions, for their own emendation and improvement, 
indefinitely, without a shaking, or disturbance, of the fabric. 

It is believed, that Mr. Clay is not misrepresented, by the 
assumption, that with him, as a statesman, the fundamental law of 
the land is not less supreme in its importance, than in its authority ; 
that it should be held supreme, however profoundly, and even 
painfully, its imperfections may be felt, in certain applications and 
directions, and over certain classes ; and that its maintenance is 
necessary for the removal of such imperfections, by its own legiti- 
mate action. It is believed, that Mr. Clay can not be under- 
stood, either on the subject of slavery, or any other great political 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 209 

question, agitating the general mind, without a distinct recognition 
of this great principle. Bred in the school of statesmen, and most 
of the action of his life having been in that field, that high moral 
sense ascribed to him in another part of this work, has been devel- 
oped in nothing more eminently, than in his conscientious regard 
for fundamental law. Believing in it, as the best that could have 
been formed in the circumstances of its date, the best that civilization 
has yet produced, and the best to harmonize the diverse interests 
and feelings of the Union, and the best in its practical operation hith- 
erto, it may be supposed he has ever felt it worthy of great respect, 
on account of its inherent and positive excellence, independent of 
the sacred character of the instrument, which would bind such a 
conscience, as that of Mr. Clay, on a fit occasion, to the stake of 
martyrdom, for its defence. In this view, Mr. Clay has very 
justly realized the confidence of a great portion of the people of 
all parts of the Union, as an advocate and defender of the constitu- 
tion, in respect to slavery, though, to some extent, that confidence, 
by misrepresentation, has been wrongfully impaired. 

Nevertheless, Mr. Clay has never suffered his respect for the 
constitution — supreme as it has ever been, in its binding force upon 
him, in the discharge of his functions as a statesman — to oblit- 
erate, or even to modify, his feelings as a man. In common with 
many eminent patriots of the slaveholding states — such as Wash- 
ington, Jefferson, Madison, Marshall, Mercer, and a host of others — 
Mr. Clay has ever regarded slavery in the United States, not less 
as a social wrong, than a great political evil — as a sore on the 
body politic — demanding the gravest consideration of the wise and 
good, for the discovery and application of a constitutional remedy. 
His entrance on the theatre of public life, in Kentucky, was as an 
emancipationist, in 1798, the year after he removed to that state, 
where he appeared first, in a series of articles, published at Lex- 
ington, in the Kentucky Gazette, over the signature of Sc-evola ; 
and soon afterward, he took the field more openly, and headed a 
party of emancipationists, during the agitation of remodelling the 
state constitution, proposing and advocating the introduction of an 
article for the gradual and ultimate abolition of slavery in the com- 
monwealth. Though he and his coadjutors failed of their object, 
they nevertheless made an earnest and bold push, leaving a lasting 
impression on the public mind. Notwithstanding it exposed him 
to obloquy, and from that period has been politically injurious to 
him, in the state of his adoption, he has never retreated from the 



210 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

ground he then occupied, otherwise than in the diversion of 
labors, which could be no longer of use, to other public objects. 

It is well known, and has often been repeated, that about twenty 
years afterward, when advocating the compromise of the Missouri 
question, he said on the floor of Congress, that, were he a citizen of 
Missouri, he would contend for an article in her constitution, like 
that he had supported in Kentucky, for gradual emancipation, with 
a view to abolition, and that he earnestly recommended it to the 
people of that state. 

In a speech delivered at the annual meeting of the American 
Colonization Society, at Washington, January 20, 1827, Mr. Clay 
said : — 

" Notwithstanding the vigilance of the powers now engaged to 
suppress the slave-trade, I have received information, that in a 
single year, in the single island of Cuba, slaves equal in amount to 
one half of the above-named number of fifty-two thousand, have 
been illicitly introduced. Is it possible, that those concerned in 
an infamous traffic, can effect more than the states of this Union, 
if they were seriously to engage in the good work [of coloniza- 
tion] ? Is it credible, is it not a libel upon human nature to 
suppose, that the triumphs of fraud, and violence, and iniquity, 
can surpass those of virtue, and benevolence, and humanity ?" 

In this place, Mr. Clay propounded the following theory, which 
was of interest then, and notwithstanding a transient check to col- 
onization which has resulted from the more recent political abolition 
movement in the free states, it may yet become of practical impor- 
tance : — 

" The population of the United States being, at this time [1827], 
estimated at about ten millions of the European race, and two of 
the African, on the supposition of the annual colonization of a 
number of the latter, equal to the annual increase of both of its 
classes (bond and free), during the whole period necessary to the 
process of duplication of our numbers, they would, at the end of 
that period, relatively stand twenty millions for the white and two 
for the black portion. But an annual exportation of a number 
equal to the annual increase, at the beginning of the term, and per- 
severed in to the end of it, would accomplish more than to keep 
the parent stock stationary. The colonists would comprehend 
more than an equal proportion of those of the prolific ages. Few 
of those who had passed that age, would migrate. So that the 
annual increase of those left behind, would continue gradually, 
but at first insensibly, to diminish ; and by the expiration of the 
period of duplication, it would be found to have materially abated. 
But it is not merely the greater relative safety and happiness. 



MR. CLAi' ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY, 



211 



which would, at the termination of that period, be the condition Oi 
the whites. Their abihty to give further stimulus to the cause ot 
colonization will have been doubled, while the subjects on which 
it would have to operate, will have decreased, or remained station- 
ary. If the business of colonization should be regularly continued 
during two periods of duplication, at the end of the second, the 
whites would stand to the blacks, as forty miUions to not more 
than two, while the same abiUty will have quadrupled. Even if 
colonization should then altogether cease, the proportion of the 
African to the European race will be so small, that the most timid 
may then for ever dismiss all ideas of danger from within or with- 
out, on account of that incongruous and perilous element in our 
population. 

"Further: By the annual withdrawal of fifty-two thousand per- 
sons of color, there would be an annual space created for an equal 
number of the white race. The period, therefore, of the duplica- 
tion of the whites, by the laws which govern population, would be 
accelerated. 

" Such is the extension and use which may be made of the 
principle of colonization, in application to our slave population, by 
those states which are alone competent to undertake and execute 
it. All, or any one of the states, which tolerate slavery, may 
adopt and execute it, by cooperation, or separate exertion." 

The following extracts from this speech, stand out in strong re- 
Uef, as a demonstration of Mr. Clay's feelings as a man, on the 
subject of slavery: — 

" If I could be instrumental in eradicating this deepest stain 
{slavery] from the character of our country, and removing all 
cause of reproach on account of it, by foreign nations ; if I could 
only be instrumental in ridding of this foul blot that revered state 
that gave me birth, or that not less beloved state which kindly 
adopted me as her son ; I would not exchange the proud satisfac- 
tion which I should enjoy, for the honor of all the triumphs ever 
decreed to the most successful conqueror. 

" We are reproached with doing mischief by the agitating of 
this question [slavery]. Collateral consequences we are not re- 
sponsible for. It is not this society, which has produced the great 
moral revolution, which the age exhibits. What would they, who 
thus reproach us, have done ? If they would repress all tenden- 
cies toward liberty, and ultimate emancipation, they must do more 
than put down the benevolent efforts of this society. They must 
go back to the era of our liberty and independence, and muzzle 
the cannon, which thunders its annual joyous return. They must 
revive the slave-trade, with all its train of atrocities. They must 
blow out the moral lights around us, and extinguish that greatest 



212 



ME. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 



torch of all, which America presents to a benighted world, point 
ing the way to their rights, their liberties, and their happiness. 
And when they have achieved all these purposes, their work will 
yet be incomplete. They must penetrate the human soul, and 
eradicate the light of reason, and the love of liberty. Then, and 
not till then, when universal darkness and despair prevail, can you 
perpetuate slavery, and repress all sympathies, and all humane and 
benevolent efforts among freemen, in behalf of the unhappy por- 
tion of our race doomed to bondage." 

In another speech, on the same subject, deUvered at Frankfort, 
Kentucky, December 17, 1829, at the anniversary of the Ken- 
tucky colonization society, Mr. Clay expressed the following sen- 
timents : — 

"More than thirty years ago an attempt was made, in this com- 
monwealth, to adopt a system of gradual emancipation, similar to 
that which the illustrious Franklin had mainly contributed to intro- 
duce, in 1780, in the state founded by the benevolent Penn. And 
among the acts of my life, which I look back to with most satis- 
faction, is that of my having cooperated, with other zealous and 
intelligent friends, to procure the establishment of that system in 
this state. We believed that the sum of good, which would be 
attained by the state of Kentucky, in a gradual emancipation of 
her slaves, would far transcend the aggregate of mischief which 
might result to herself and the Union together, from the gradual 
liberation of them, and their dispersion and residence in the United 
States. We were overpowered by numbers, but submitted to the 
decision of the majority, with a grace which the minority, in a re- 
public, should ever yield to such a decision. I have, neverthe- 
less, never ceased, and never shall cease, to regret a decision, the 
effects of which have been to place us in the rear of our neighbors, 
who are exempt from slavery, in the state of agriculture, the prog- 
ress of manufactures, the advance of improvements, and the gen- 
eral prosperity of society." 

In the same speech, speaking of the portentous aspects of sla- 
very in the United States, he asks: — 

" Is there no remedy? Must we endure perpetually all the un 
doubted mischiefs of a state of slavery, as it affects both the free 
and bond portions of these states? What mind is sufficiently ex- 
tensive in its reach, what nerves sufficiently strong, to contemplate 
this vast and progressive augmentation [of the slave population] 
without an awful foreboding of the tremendous consequences? 

" When we consider the cruelty of the origin of negro-slavery, 
its nature, the character of the free institutions of the whites, and 
the irresistible progress of public opinion, throughout America, as 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 213 

well as in Europe, it is impossible not to anticipate frequent insur- 
rections among the blacks in the United States ; they are rational 
beings, like ourselves, capable of feeling, of reflection, and of 
judging of what naturally belongs to them as a portion of the hu- 
man race. By the very condition of the relation which subsists 
between us, we are enemies of each other. They know well the 
wrongs which their ancestors suffered, at the hands of our ances- 
tors, and the wrongs which they believe they continue to endure, 
although they may be unable to avenge them. They are kept in 
subjection only by the superior intelligence and superior power of 
the predominant race. 

"If we were to invoke the greatest blessing on earth, which 
Heaven, in its mercy, could now bestow on this nation, it would 
be the separation of the two most numerous races of its popula- 
lation, and their comfortable establishment in distinct and distant 
countries. To say nothing of the greatest difficulty in the forma- 
tion of our present happy constitution, which arose out of this 
mixed condition of our people ; nothing of the distracting Missouri 
question, which was so threatening; nothing of others springing 
from the same fruitful source, which yet agitate us, who can con- 
template the future, without the most awful apprehensions? Who, 
if this promiscuous residence of whites and blacks, of freemen 
and slaves, is for ever to continue, can imagine the servile wars, the 
carnage and the crimes, which will be its probable consequences, 
without shuddering with horror? 

In presenting a memorial of the Kentucky colonization society 
to the senate, March 28, 1832, among other things, Mr. Clay 
said : — 

" The general subject [slavery] was one, than which, perhaps, 
no other had more seriously engaged the attention of the people 
of this country. No man, he presumed, could fail to cherish the 
hope, that, at some day or other, however distant, and in some 
mode, the country would be rid of this, the darkest spot on its 
mantle. How that was to be accomplished, it was, perhaps, not 
allowable to the present generation to foresee. All, however, must 
unite m the hope, that, at the proper time, the proper means would 
be devised, to arrive at this most desirable end. With respect to 
the constitutional question involved, he entertained not the slight- 
est doubt, that the subject of the abolition of slavery could not be 
touched by the general government. It belonged exclusively to 
the states where slavery existed." With regard to colonization, 
"he sincerely entertained the hope, that the day was not far dis- 
tant when, forgetting all that now tended to distract and excite us, 
and recollecting that we were a common people, ahke interested 
in the common prosperity, we could without any of these objec- 
tions, take this question into full consideration, and dispose of it, 



214 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 



in a manner, congenial with the feelings, as well as the interest of 
all. It was true, that the friends of the colonization society had 
contended, that the right to remove the free blacks existed in the 
general government ; and that, as this part of the black population 
was moved off, the several states might deem it proper to intro- 
duce a system of gradual emancipation, such as was introduced by 
Franklin, in Pennsylvania, in 1780." 

It will be seen, therefore, that, for at least thirty years of Mr. 
Clay's public life, he had but one feeling as a man, on the subject 
of slavery, which he freely and frankly avowed, on all fit occasions, 
public as well as private, in the halls of legislation, and at numer- 
ous public meetings, in the face of the nation and the world. He 
began his career as an emancipationist, in 1798, first by articles in 
the Kentucky Gazette, and then as a zealous supporter of the party 
in that state, whose aim was to introduce an emancipation clause in 
the new constitution. Thirty years afterward, he declares his ad- 
herence to the same opinion, in his speech before the Kentucky 
colonization society, at Frankfort, as above cited, and says: 
" Among the acts of my life, which I look back to with satisfac- 
tion, is that of my having cooperated, with other zealous and intel- 
ligent friends, to promote the establishment of that system in this 
state." He gave distinct and emphatic expression to this feeling, 
in 1820, in the debate on the Missouri question, and has never 
been known to deviate from it. While advocating the political 
emancipation of Spanish America, in 1820, he said: — 

" Some gentlemen had intimated, that the people of the south 
were unfit for freedom. Will gentlemen contend, said Mr. Clay, 
because those people are not like us in all particulars, they are 
therefore unfit for freedom ? In some particulars, he ventured to 
say, that the people of South America were in advance of us. On 
the point which had been so much discussed on this floor, during 
the present session, they were greatly in advance of us. Grenada, 
Venezuela, and Buenos Ayres, had all emancipated their slaves. 
He did not say that we ought to do so, or that they ought to have 
done so, under different circumstances ; but he rejoiced that the 
eircumstances were such as to permit them to do it." 

But this feeling was not peculiar to Mr. Clay. It was common 
to and equally decided and strong in the breasts of a host of the most 
prominent and influential men, and leading statesmen, of the slave- 
holding states, until they became alarmed by the violence of nor- 
thern political abolitionists. The feeling in favor of emancipation 
in the slave states — where alone it can be effective, and in which 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 215 

alone is vested a constitutional power over the subject — was ad- 
vancing, and becoming more and more influential, till a damper 
was cast over it, by what was regarded — not without reason — as an 
interference with their constitutional rights. As was a natural con- 
sequence of such an interference, these feelings and these efforts in 
the slave states, in favor of emancipation, all at once ceased. 
What many of the people of the slave states were disposed to do 
of their own accord, they would not have forced upon them by 
improper means. Ceasing from their labors in a benevolent cause, 
they started up for the defence of their rights, as they viewed 
them, and that is the position which the people of the slave states 
have for several years occupied, so far as the question of slavery 
is concerned. 

It is obvious, that this change of feehng, in the two great quar- 
ters of the Union, on the subject of slavery, must have had its in- 
fluence, positively or negatively, in some respects both, on the po- 
sition of public men ; and that, on none could the duty of circum- 
spection and caution be more imperatively incumbent, in regard to 
such a state of things, than upon those pure and devoted patriots, 
who are charged with preserving the harmony and integrity of the 
Union. They who might before freely and frankly express their 
feelings as men — though of the same opinion still — are, in such a 
change of circumstances, compelled to consider what is their duty 
as STATESMEN and patriots. When a house is safe, the ten- 
ants may sport themselves in it, or luxuriate in sentiment, accord- 
ing to their pleasure ; but when a tornado is heard approaching, or 
has burst upon it, or when the earthquake admonishes to the duty 
of self-preservation, the scene is entirely changed. 

There is no reason to suppose, that Mr. Clay's feelings, on the 
subject of slavery, have undergone any change, or that they are 
not truly expressed in the quotations already made from his 
speeches ; but his position, as a public man, has doubtless been 
affected by the events of the last few years, above alluded to. 
Ever anxious for the harmony and integrity of the Union, he has 
been compelled, in this agitation, to refer to "the law and the tes- 
timony" — to determine the relative rights of the states, in respect 
to slavery, as defined in the federal constitution, and to plant his 
foot on that platform, to stand while it stands, and to fall only when 
that must fall. 

It was in view of this new state of things, that Mr. Clay took 
occasion, in the senate, February 7, 1839, to express his feehng? 

Vol. I.— 13 



216 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

and apprehensions, in regard to political abolition, as agitated in 
the free states. He said : — 

" I am, Mr. President, no friend of slavery. The Searcher of 
all hearts knows, that every pulsation of mine beats high in the 
cause of civil liberty. Wherever it is safe and practicable, I de- 
sire to see every portion of the human family in the enjoyment of 
it. But I prefer the liberty of my own country to that of any other 
people, and the liberty of my own race to that of any other race." 

He adverted, on this occasion, to the effort, in which he was 
engaged for emancipation, in the state of Kentucky, in 179S-'9: — 

" Forty years ago, the question was agitated in Kentucky, of a 
gradual emancipation of slaves within its limits. By gradual eman- 
cipation, I mean that slow, but safe and cautious liberation of 
slaves, which was first adopted in Pennsylvania, at the instance of 
Dr. Franklin [it was the Hon. George Bryan, as afterward cor- 
rected by Mr. Clay], in 1780, and according to which, the gen- 
eration in being were to remain in slavery, but all their offspring, 
born after a specified period, were to be free at the age of twenty- 
eight, and in the meantime were to receive preparatory instruction 
to qualify them for the enjoyment of freedom. That was the spe- 
cies of emancipation, which, at the epoch to which I allude, was 
discussed in Kentucky. No one was rash enough to think of 
throwing loose upon the community, ignorant and unprepared, the 
untutored slaves of the state. Many thought — and I among them 
— that, as each of the slave states had a right exclusively to judge 
for itself, in respect to the institution of domestic slavery, the pro- 
portion of slaves, compared with the white population in that state, 
at that time, was so inconsiderable, that a system of gradual eman- 
cipation might have been safely adopted, without any hazard to the 
security and interests of the commonwealth. And I still think, 
that the question of such emancipation in the farming states, is one 
whose solution depends upon the relative numbers of the two 
races, in any given state. If I had been a citizen of the state of 
Pennsylvania, when Franklin's plan was adopted, I should have 
voted for it." 

But Mr. Clay apparendy thinks — and there are few, probably, 
who think otherwise — that this northern political abolition has put 
the country, the slave states, and all true patriots, in a new posi- 
tion. He says : — 

" Instead of advancing that cause [of emancipation] by their ef- 
forts, they have thrown back for half a century, the prospect of any 
species of emancipation of the African race, gradual or immediate, 
in any of the states. The proposition in Kentucky for a gradual 
emancipation, did not prevail ; but it was sustained by a large and 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 217 

respectable minority. That minority had increased, and was in- 
creasing, until the abolitionists commenced their operations. The 
effect has been, to dissipate all prospects whatever, for the present, 
of any scheme of gradual or other emancipation. The people of 
that state have become shocked and alarmed by these abolition 
movements, and the number, who would now favor a system even 
of gradual emancipation, is probably less than it was in t-he years 
179S-'9. But for the agitation of the question of abolition, in 
states, whose population, in the opinion of the people of Kentucky, 
had no right to interfere in the matter, the vote for a convention 
[in 1838, to amend the constitution, for emancipation and other 
objects] would have been much larger, if it had not been carried. 
Only about one fourth of the people voted for it. 

" Prior to the agitation of this question of abolition, there was 
a progressive melioration in the condition of slaves throughout all 
the slave states. In some of them, schools of instruction were 
opened by humane and religious persons. These are all now 
checked ; and a spirit of insubordination having shown itself in 
some localities, traceable, it is believed, to abolition movements 
and exertions, the legislative authorities have found it expedient to 
infuse fresh vigor into the police, and laws which regulate the con- 
duct of the slaves. 

" It is frequently asked, what is to become of the African race 
among us ? Are they for ever to remain in bondage ? That ques- 
tion was asked more than a half century ago. The true answer is, 
that the same Providence, that has hitherto guided and governed 
us, and averted all serious evils from the existing relations between 
the two races, will guide and govern our posterity. Sufficient 
unto the day is the evil thereof We have hitherto, with that 
blessing, taken care of ourselves. Posterity will find the means 
of its own preservation and prosperity. It is only in the most dire- 
ful event that could befall this people, that this great interest, and 
all other of our great interests, could be put in jeopardy" — the dis- 
solution of the Union by such a cause. "If we may attempt to 
lift the veil, and contemplate what lies beyond it, I too have ven- 
tured upon a speculative theory, with which I will not now trouble 
you, but which has been published to the world. According to 
that, in the progress of time, some one hundred and fifty or two 
hundred years hence, but few vestiges of the black race will remain 
among our posterity." 

Mr. Clay here refers to the theory, which is in part propounded 
in one of the foregoing extracts from his speech before the Ameri- 
can Colonization Society, in 1827, and which was more fully de- 
veloped in his speech at Frankfort, in 1829. It is allied to the 
scheme of colonization, \v which Mr. Clay has always had faith 



218 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

and apparently still has. If the country should ever obtain repose 
from the agitation of political abolition, before it be too late, this 
scheme will not improbably be revived, and the hopes of Mr. Clay 
may be realized. The project is a magnificent one. It is even 
morally sublime. Nor is it, in a favorable state of the public mind, 
less feasible, than captivating — alike captivating to the American 
patriot, to the philanthropist, to the Christian. A little more than 
a million of dollars annually — much less than a million and a half 
— would transport, and establish in Africa, an amount of the col- 
ored population of the United States, free and emancipated for the 
purpose, equal to the entire natural increase. Once undertaken, 
with energy and in general harmony, the willingness of the emi- 
grants, and the ability of the public to sustain the work, would 
grow together ; all interests would be harmonized ; the bosom of 
the nation would be relieved of a frightful and oppressive incubus ; 
and with this relief, the continent of Africa would be civilized and 
Christianized by the descendants of those, who were forced into 
bondage in the western world, by savage captivity, and through 
the horrors of the " middle 'passage.'''' Both continents would be 
blessed, and Africa not the least. 

Mr. Clay has frankly expressed his opinion against the feasibil- 
ity, and even against the safety, of a universal emancipation, un- 
connected with a system of colonization. He does not believe, 
that the two races can ever live together in a state of equality. 

" They [the abolitionists, he says] put themselves in direct op- 
position to any separation whatever between the two races. They 
would keep them for ever pent up together within the same limits, 
perpetuating their animosities and constantly endangering the peace 
of the community. They proclaim, indeed, that color is nothing; 
that the organic and characteristic differences between the two 
races ought to be entirely overlooked and disregarded. And, el- 
evating themselves to a sublime but impracticable philosophy, they 
would teach us to eradicate all the repugnances of our nature, and 
to take to our bosoms and our boards, the black man as we do 
the white, on the same footing of equal social condition. Do 
they not perceive that in thus confounding all the distinctions 
which God himself has made, they arraign the wisdom and good- 
ness of Providence itself'? It has been his divine pleasure to 
make the black man black, and the white man white, and to dis- 
tinguish them by other repulsive constitutional differences. It is 
not necessary for me to maintain, nor shall I endeavor to prove, 
that it was any part of his divine intention that the one race should 
be held in perpetual bondage by the other ; but this I will say 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 219 

that those whom he has created different, and has declared, by 
their physical structure and color, ought to be kept asunder, 
should not be brought together by any process whatever of unnat- 
ural amalgamation. 

" But if the dangers of the civil contest which I have supposed 
could be avoided, separation or amalgamation is the only peaceful 
alternative, if it were possible to effectuate the project of abolition. 
The abolitionists oppose all colonization, and it irresistibly follows, 
whatever they may protest or declare, that they are in favor of 
amalgamation. And who are to bring about this amalgamation? 
I have heard of none of these ultra-abolitionists furnishing in their 
own families or persons examples of intermarriage. Who is to 
begin it ? Is it their purpose, not only to create a pinching com- 
petition between black labor and white labor, but do they intend 
also to contaminate the industrious and laborious classes of society 
at the north by a revolting admixture of the black element?" 

In his answer to Mr. Mendenhall, at Richmond, Indiana, Octo- 
ber 1, 1842, Mr. Clay said : — 

" I know the predominant sentiment in the free states is adverse 
to slavery ; but, happy in their own exemption from whatever 
evils may attend it, the great mass of our fellow-citizens there do 
not seek to violate the constitution, or to disturb the harmony of 
these states. I desire no concealment of my opinions in regard 
to the institution of slavery. I look upon it as a great evil, and 
deeply lament that we have derived it from the parental govern- 
ment, and from our ancestors. I wish every slave in the United 
States was in the country of his ancestors. But here they are, 
and the question is, how can they be best dealt with ? If a state 
of nature existed, and we were about to lay the foundations of so- 
ciety, no man would be more strongly opposed than I should be, 
to incorporate the institution of slavery among its elements. But 
there is an incalculable difference between the original formation 
of society and a long-existing organized society, with its ancient 
laws, institutions, and establishments. Now, great as I acknowl- 
edge, in my opinion, the evils of slavery are, they are nothing, 
absolutely nothing, in comparison with the far greater evils which 
would inevitably flow from a sudden, general, and indiscriminate 
emancipation. In some of the states the number of slaves ap- 
proximates toward an equality with that of the whites ; in one or 
two they surpass them. What would be the condition of the two 
races in those states, upon the supposition of an immediate eman- 
cipation ? Does any man suppose that they would become blend- 
ed into one homogeneous mass ? Does any man recommend 
amalgamation — that revolting admixture, alike offensive to God 
and man? For, those whom He, by their physical properties, has 
made unlike and put asunder, we may, without presumptuousness. 



'280 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

suppose, were never intended to be joined together in one of the 
hcliest rites. And let me tell you, sir, if you do not already 
know it, that such are the feelings — prejudice, if you please (and 
what man, claiming to be a statesman, will overlook or disregard 
the deep-seated and unconquerable prejudices of the people ?) — 
in the slave states, that no human law could enforce a union be- 
tween the two races. 

" What then would certainly happen? A struggle for political 
ascendency ; the blacks seeking to acquire, and the whites to 
maintain, possession of the government. Upon the supposition 
of a general immediate emancipation in those states where the 
blacks outnumber the whites, they would have nothing to do but 
to insist upon another part of the same declaration of independence, 
as Dorr and his deluded democratic followers recently did in 
Rhode Island ; according to which, an undefined majority have 
the right, at their pleasure, to subvert an existing government, and 
institute a new one in its place ; and then the whites would be 
brought in complete subjection to the blacks ! A contest would 
inevitably ensue between the two races — civil war, carnage, pil- 
lage, conflagration, devastation, and the ultimate extermination or 
expulsion of the blacks. Nothing is more certain. And are not 
th se evils far greater than the mild and continually improving 
state of slavery which exists in this country ? I say continually 
improving ; for if this gratifying progress in the amelioration of 
the condition of the slaves has been checked in some of the states, 
the responsibility must attach to the unfortunate agitation of the 
subject of abolition. In consequence of it, increased rigor in the 
police, and further restraints have been imposed ; and I do believe 
that gradual emancipation (the only method of liberation that has 
ever been thought safe or wise by anybody in any of the slave 
states) has been postponed half a century." 

When the project of the political abolitionists in the free states 
had made its undisguised demonstrations on the constitutional 
rights of the slave states, Mr. Clay thought it incumbent upon 
him, as a responsible participant in the national councils, to waive 
all sentimental theories, in which any man in quiet times may in- 
nocently indulge, and to apply himself to this subject as a practical 
statesman — not less, however, as a philanthropist and patriot. 
In his speech in the senate, of February, 1S39, he classifies the 
opponents of slavery as follows : — 

" There are three classes of persons opposed, or apparently 
opposed, to the continued existence of slavery in the United 
States. The first are those who, from sentiments of philanthropy 
and humanity, are conscientiously opposed to the existence of 
slavery, but who are no less opposed, at the same time, to any 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 221 

disturbance of the peace and tranquillity of the union, or the in 
fringement of the powers of the states composing the confederacy. 
In this class may be comprehended that peaceful and exemplary 
society of ' Friends,' one of whose established maxims is, an abhor 
rence of war in all its forms, and the cultivation of peace and 
goodwill among mankind. The next class consists of apparent 
abolitionists ; that is, those who, having been persuaded that the 
right of petition has been violated by Congress, co-operate with 
the abolitionists for the sole purpose of asserting and vindicating 
that right. And the third class are the real ultra-abolitionists, who 
are resolved to persevere in the pursuit of their object at all haz- 
ards, and without regard to any consequences, however calamitous 
they may be. With them the rights of property are nothing ; the 
deficiency of the powers of the general government is nothing ; 
the acknowledged and incontestable powers of the states are 
nothing ; civil war, a dissolution of the Union, and the overthrow 
of a government in which are concentrated the fondest hopes of 
the civilized world, are nothing. A single idea has taken posses- 
sion of their minds, and onward they pursue it, overlooking all 
barriers, reckless and regardless of all consequences. With this 
class, the immediate abolition of slavery in the District of Colum- 
bia, and in the territory of Florida, the prohibition of the removal 
of slaves from state to state, and the refusal to admit any new 
state, comprising within its limits the institution of domestic sla- 
very, are but so many means conducing to the accompHshment of 
the ultimate but perilous end at which they avowedly and boldly 
aim — are but so many short stages in the long and bloody road to 
the distant goal at which they would finally arrive. Their pur- 
pose is abolition, universal abolition — peaceably if it can, forcibly 
if it must be. Their object is no longer concealed by the thin- 
nest veil ; it is avowed and proclaimed. Utterly destitute of con- 
stitutional or other rightful power, living in totally distinct com- 
munities, as alien to the communities in which the subject on 
which they would operate resides, so far as concerns political 
power over that subject, as if they lived in Africa or Asia, they 
nevertheless promulgate to the world their purpose to be, to man- 
umit forthwith, and without compensation, and without moral 
preparation, three millions of negro slaves, under jurisdictions 
altogether separated from those under which they live. I have 
said, that immediate abolition of slavery in the District of Colum- 
bia and the territory of Florida, and the exclusion of new states, 
were only means toward the attainment of a much more important 
end. Unfortunately they are not the only means. Another, and 
much more lamentable one, is that which this class is endeavor- 
ing to employ, of arraying one portion against another portion of 
the Union. With that view, in all their leading prints and pub- 
lications, the alleged horrors of slavery are depicted in the most 



222 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

glowing and exaggerated colors, to excite the imaginations and 
stimulate the rage of the people in the free states, against the peo- 
ple in the slave states. The slaveholder is held up and repre- 
sented as the most atrocious of human beings. Advertisements 
of fugitive-slaves and of slaves to be sold, are carefully collected 
and blazoned forth, to infuse a spirit of detestation and hatred 
against one entire and the largest section of the Union. And, 
like a notorious agitator upon another theatre, they would hunt 
down and proscribe from the pale of civilized society, the inhab- 
itants of that entire section. # # # # 

"But the means to which I have already adverted are not the 
only ones which this third class of ultra-abolitionists are employ- 
ing to effect their ultimate end. They began their operations by 
professing to employ only persuasive means in appealing to the 
humanity, and enlightening the understandings, of the slavehold- 
ing portion of the Union. If there were some kindness in this 
avowed motive, it must be acknowledged that there was rather a 
presumptuous display also of an assumed superiority in intelli- 
gence and knowledge. For some time they continued to make 
these appeals to our duty and our interest ; but impatient with the 
slow influence of their logic upon our stupid minds, they recently 
resolved to change their system of action. To the agency gf 
their powers of persuasion, they now propose to substitute the 
powers of the ballot-box ; and he must be blind to what is passing 
before us, who does not perceive that the inevitable tendency of 
their proceedings is, if these should be found insufficient, to in 
voke, finally, the more potent powers of the bayonet. 

" Mr. President, it is at this alarming stage of the proceedings 
of the ultra-abolitionists, that I would seriously invite every con- 
siderate man in the country solemnly to pause, and deliberately 
to reflect, not merely on our existing posture, but upon that 
dreadful precipice down which they would hurry us. It is be- 
cause these ultra-abolitionists have ceased to employ the instru- 
ments of reason and persuasion, have made their cause political, 
and have appealed to the ballot-box, that I am induced, upon this 
occasion, to address you." 

Mr. Clay next proceeds to designate the epochs in the history 
of the United States, when the public mind has been agitated by 
the question of slavery, as follows : — 

" There have been three epochs in the history of our country, 
at which the spirit of abolition displayed itself. The first was 
immediately after the formation of the present federal government. 
When the constitution was about going into operation, its powers 
were not well understood by the community at large, and remained 
to be accurately interpreted and defined. At that period numerous 
abolition societies were formed, comprising not merely the society 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 223 

of Friends, but many other good men. Petitions were presented 
to Congress, praying for the abolition of slavery. They were 
received without serious opposition, referred, and reported upon 
by ! committee. The report stated, that the general government 
had no powe^ to abolish slavery, as it existed in the several states, 
and that these states themselves had exclusive jurisdiction over the 
subject. The report was generally acquiesced in, and satisfaction 
and tranquillity ensued ; the abolition societies thereafter limiting 
their exertions, in respect to the black population, to offices of 
humanity within the scope of existing laws. 

" The next period when the subject of slavery, and abolition 
incidentally, was brought into notice and discussion, was that on 
the memorable occasion of the admission of the state of Missouri 
into the Union. The struggle was long, strenuous, and fearful. 
It is too recent to make it necessary to do more than merely advert 
to it, and to say, that it was finally composed by one of those com- 
promises characteristic of our institutions, and of which the consti- 
tution itself is the most signal instance. 

" The third is that in which we now find ourselves. Various 
causes, Mr. President, have contributed to produce the existing 
excitement on the subject of abolition. The principal one, perhaps, 
is the example of British emancipation of the slaves in the islands 
adjacent to our country. Such is the similarity in laws, in language, 
in institutions, and in common origin, between Great Britain and 
the United States, that no great measure of national policy can be 
adopted in the one country, without producing a considerable 
degree of influence in the other. Confounding the totally different 
cases together, of the powers of the British parliament and those 
of the Congress of the United States, and the totally different situ- 
ations of the British West India islands, and the slaves in the 
sovereign and independent states of this confederacy, superficial 
men have inferred, from the undecided British experiment, the 
practicability of the abolition of slavery in these states. The pow- 
ers of the British parliament are unlimited, and are often described 
to be omnipotent. The powers of the American Congress, on the 
contrary, are few, cautiously limited, scrupulously excluding all 
that are not granted, and, above all, carefully and absolutely 
excluding all power over the existence or continuance of slavery in 
the several states. The slaves, too, upon which British legislation 
operated, were not in the bosom of the kingdom, but in remote and 
feeble colonies having no voice in parliament. The West India 
slaveholder was neither represented, nor representative, in that 
parliament. And while 1 most fervently wish complete success to 
the British experiment of West India emancipation, I confess, that 
I have fearful forebodings of a disastrous termination of it. What- 
ever it may be, I think it must be admitted, that, if the British 
parliament treated the West India slaves as freemen, it also treated 



224 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

the West India freemen as slaves. If, instead of these slaves being 
separated by a wide ocean from the parent-country, three or four 
milHons of African negro-slaves had been dispersed over England, 
Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, and their owners had been members 
of the British parliament — a case which would have presented 
some analogy to that of our own country — does any one believe 
that it would have been expedient or practicable to have emanci- 
pated them, leaving them to remain, with all their embittered feel- 
ings, in the united kingdom, boundless as the powers of the British 
parliament are ? 

" Other causes have conspired with the British example to pro- 
duce the existing excitement from abolition. I say it with profound 
regret, but with no intention to occasion irritation here or elsewhere, 
that there are persons in both parts of the Union who have sought 
to mingle abolition with politics, and to array one portion of the 
Union against the other. It is the misfortune in free countries, 
that, in high party times, a disposition too often prevails to seize 
hold of everything which can strengthen the one side or weaken 
the other. Charges of fostering abolition designs have been heed- 
lessly and unjustly made by one party against the other. Prior to 
the late election of the present president of the United States, he 
was charged with being an abolitionist, and abolition designs were 
imputed to many of his supporters. Much as I was opposed to 
his election, and am to his administration, I neither shared in 
making nor believing the truth of the charge. He was scarcely 
installed in office before the same charge was directed against those 
who opposed his election. 

" Mr. President, it is not true, and I rejoice that it is not true, 
that either of the two great parties in this country has any designs 
or aim at abolition. I should deeply lament if it were true. I 
should consider, if it were true, that the danger to the stability of 
our system would be infinitely greater than any which does, I hope, 
actually exist. While neither party can be, I think, justly accused 
of any abolition tendency or purpose, both have profited, and both 
have been injured, in particular localities, by the accession or ab- 
straction of abolition support. If the account were fairly stated, 
I beheve the party to which I am opposed has profited much more, 
and been injured much less, than that to which I belong. But I 
am far, for that reason, from being disposed to accuse our adver- 
saries of being abolitionists." 

As the occa^on on which this speech in the senate was deliv- 
ered, was the presentation of a petition from the inhabitants of the 
district of Columbia, adverse to the petitions for the abolition of 
slavery in that district, and in the territories of the Union, Mr. Clay 
was forced to express his opinion on the rights of Congress to 
abolish slavery in the ten-miles-square under its jurisdiction, and 



MR. CLAY ON DOBIBSTIC SLAVERY. 225 

in the territory of Florida ; and with this question was involved 
the domestic slave-trade, as one topic of the petitions discussed. 
It will be observed, that Mr. Clay approaches these questions as 
an interpreter of constitutional law, and not as a philanthropist. 
He does not decide as to how he might personally, in his own 
feelings, wish the case to be ; but as to what he conscientiously 
believes to be the law. When Mr. John Quincy Adams freely 
presented petitions for the abolition of slavery in the district of 
Columbia, he at the same time declared his opinion, that Congress 
had no power to do it. Mr. Clay declared the same opinion, and 
gave his reasons, which were in substance, first, that the grant of 
power " to exercise jurisdiction in all cases whatsoever over such 
district," was a necessary form for the purposes of government. 
But, secondly, the intention of the parties which ceded, and the 
design of the party which accepted, were sacred and obligatory, 
neither of which contemplated such a measure. It would there- 
fore be a violation of good faith, if done against the will of the 
ceding parties, Maryland and Virginia. The grant must be under- 
stood, and should be always interpreted, as having relation to the 
o}^ect of the cession as a seat of government of the United States. 
Thirdly, the government of the people of the district, on republican 
principles, would require, that the exercise of municipal jurisdic- 
tion, should be framed according to their will, and not according 
to the will of a community, or communities, foreign to them. 

In regard to the abolition of slavery in the territory of Florida — 
it then being a territory — it was, in the first place, received into 
the Union, by cession from Spain, with all its municipal rights, 
slavery being one of them ; and in the next place, it was south of 
the compromise line, as settled in the adjustment of the Missouri 
question. Admitting that Congress had power to step over these 
obstacles, it would be a violence to the feelings of the parties con- 
cerned, and a disturbance of the peace of the Union. It would 
open afresh the wounds that were healed by the Missouri com- 
promise. 

As respects the domestic slave-trade, so called, however deplor- 
able in itself, the power given to Congress to regulate trade be- 
tween the states, was not a power to prohibit ; and even the power 
to regulate, had never been used. 

After these interpretations of law, Mr. Clay said : — 

** I will not detain the senate longer on the subject of slavery 
within the district and in Florida, or of the right of Congress to 



226 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

prohibit the removal of slaves from one state to another. These, 
as I have already intimated, with ultra-abolitionists, are but so 
many masked batteries, concealing the real and ultimate point of 
attack. That point of attack is the institution of domestic slavery, 
as it exists in these states. It is to liberate three millions of slaves 
held in bondage within them." 

Mr. Clay's notice of "the insurmountable obstacles," which lie 
in the path of these " ultra-abolitionists," was pertinent to the 
occasion, and forcible in its array, though now familiar to all who 
have given but small attention to this debate. 

The tenth article of the amendments of the federal constitution, 
to wit : " The powers not delegated to the United States, by the 
constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the 
states respectively, or to the people" — entirely bars the way of the 
abolitionists, as to their political action in the free states toward the 
slave states, and makes all such action an offensive interference. 
Another obstacle is the annihilation, at a blow, of the existing rela- 
tions between three millions of slaves, to less than half the number 
of masters of a different race, and forcing the former into a politi- 
cal, civil, and social equality with the latter, reckless of conse- 
quences. A third obstacle is the annihilation, by the same blow, of 
twelve hundred millions of property, without indemnification. The 
question is not as to the moral right of such property, but as to the 
fact, as recognised and established by centuries of legislation, run- 
ning into all the forms, relations, and ramifications of such a state 
of society, be it right or wrong, the best or the worst possible, or 
only tolerable. 

The following passage of the speech, now under review, is not 
unworthy of a place here : — 

" Mr. President, at the period of the formation of our constitu- 
tion, and afterward, our patriotic ancestors, apprehended danger to 
the Union from two causes. One was, the Allegany mountains, 
dividing the waters which flow into the Atlantic ocean from those 
which found their outlet in the gulf of Mexico. They seemed to 
present a natural separation. That danger has vanished before 
the noble achievements of the spirit of internal improvement, and 
the immortal genius of Fulton. And now, nowhere is found a 
more loyal attachment to the Union, than among those very 
western people, who, it was apprehended, would be the first to 
burst its ties. 

" The other cause, domestic slavery, happily the sole remaining 
cause which is likely to disturb our harmony, continues to exist. 
It was this, which created the greatest obstacle, and the most anx 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 227 

lous solicitude, in the deliberations of the convention that adopted 
the general constitution. And it is this subject that has ever been 
regarded with the deepest anxiety by all who are sincerely desirous 
of the permanency of our Union. The father of his country, in 
his last affecting and solemn appeal to his fellow-citizens, depre- 
cated, as a most calamitous event, the geographical divisions which 
it might produce. The convention wisely left to the several states 
the power over the institution of slavery, as a power not necessary 
to the plan of union which it devised, and as one with which the 
general government could not be invested, without planting the 
seeds of certain destruction. There let it remain undisturbed by 
any unhallowed hand. 

" Sir, I am not in the habit of speaking lightly of the possibility 
of dissolving this happy Union. The senate knows that I have 
deprecated allusions, on ordinary occasions, to that direful event. 
The country will testify, that, if there be anything in the history 
of my public career worthy of recollection, it is the truth and sin- 
cerity of my ardent devotion to its lasting preservation. But we 
should be false in our allegiance to it, if we did not discriminate 
between the imaginary and real dangers by which it may be as- 
sailed. Abolition should no longer be regarded as an imaginary 
danger. The abolitionists, let me suppose, succeed in their pres- 
ent aim of uniting the inhabitants of the free states, as one man, 
against the inhabitants of the slave states. Union on the one side 
will beget union on the other. And this process of reciprocal con- 
solidation will be attended with all the violent prejudices, embit- 
tered passions, and implacable animosities, which ever degraded 
or deformed human nature. A virtual dissolution of the Union 
will have taken place, while the forms of its existence remain. The 
most valuable element of union, mutual kindness, the feelings of 
sympathy, the fraternal bonds, which now happily unite us, will 
have been extinguished for ever. One section will stand in mena- 
cing and hostile array against the other. The collision of opinion 
will be quickly followed by the clash of arms. I will not attempt 
to describe scenes which now happily lie concealed from our view. 
Abolitionists themselves would shrink back in dismay and horror 
at the contemplation of desolated fields, conflagrated cities, mur- 
dered inhabitants, and the overthrow of the fairest fabric of human 
government that ever rose to animate the hopes of civilized man. 
Nor should these abolitionists flatter themselves that, if they can 
succeed in their object of uniting the people of the free states, they 
will enter the contest with a numerical superiority that mijst insure 
victory. All history and experience proves the hazard and uncer- 
tainty of war. And we are admonished by Holy Writ, that the 
race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong. But if they 
were to conquer, whom would they conquer? A foreign foe — one 
who had insulted our flae:, invaded our shores, and laid our coun- 



228 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

try waste ? No, sir ; no, sir. It would be a conquest without 
laurels, without glory ; a self, a suicidal conquest ; a conquest of 
brothers over brothers, achieved by one over another portion of 
the descendants of common ancestors, who, nobly pledging their 
lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor, had fought and bled, 
side by side, in many a hard battle on land and ocean, severed 
our country from the British crown, and established our national 
independence. 

" The inhabitants of the slave states are sometimes accused by 
their northern brethren with displaying too much rashness and 
sensibility to the operations and proceedings of abolitionists. But 
before they can be rightly judged, there should be a reversal of 
conditions. Let me suppose that the people of the slave states 
were to form societies, subsidize presses, make large pecuniary 
contributions, send forth numerous missionaries throughout all 
their own borders, and enter into machinations to burn the beauti- 
ful capitals, destroy the productive manufactories, and sink in the 
ocean the gallant ships of the northern states. Would these in- 
cendiary proceedings be regarded as neighborly and friendly, and 
consistent with the fraternal sentiments which should ever be cher- 
ished by one portion of the Union toward another ? Would they 
excite no emotion ? occasion no manifestations of dissatisfaction ? 
nor lead to any acts of retaliatory violence ? But the supposed 
case falls far short of the actual one in a most essential circum- 
stance. In no contingency could these capitals, manufactories; 
and ships, rise in rebellion, and massacre inhabitants of the north- 
ern states." 

Mr. Clay concludes this speech as follows : — 

" If one dark spot exists on our political horizon, is it not ob 
scured by the bright, and effulgent, and cheering light that beams 
all around us? Was ever a people before so blessed as we are, 
if true to ourselves ? Did ever any other nation contain within its 
bosom so many elements of prosperity, of greatness, and of glory? 
Our only real danger lies ahead, conspicuous, elevated and visible. 
It was clearly discerned at the commencement, and distinctly seen 
throughout our whole career. Shall we wantonly run upon it, and 
destroy all the glorious anticipations of the high destiny that awaits 
us ? I beseech the abolitionists themselves, solemnly to pause in 
their mad and fatal course. Amid the infinite variety of objects 
of humanity and benevolence which invite the employment of their 
energies, let them select some one more harmless, that does not 
threaten to deluge our country in blood. I call upon that small 
portion of the clergy, which has lent itself to these wild and ruinous 
schemes, not to forget the holy nature of the divine mission of the 
founder of our religion, and to profit by his peaceful examples. I 
entreat that portion of my countrywomen, who have given theii 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 229 

countenance to abolition, to remember, that they are ever most 
loved and honored when moving in their own appropriate and de- 
lightful sphere ; and to reflect that the ink which they shed in sub- 
scribing with their fair hands abolition petitions, may prove but the 
prelude to the shedding of the blood of their brethren. I adjure all 
the inhabitants of the free states to rebuke and discountenance, by 
their opinion and their example, measures which must inevitably 
lead to the most calamitous consequences. And let us all, as 
countrymen, as friends, and as brothers, cherish, in unfading mem- 
ory, the motto which bore our ancestors triumphantly through all 
the trials of the revolution, as, if adhered to, it will conduct their 
posterity through all that may, in the dispensations of Providence, 
be reserved for them." 

It has been thought, that the best test of Mr. Clay's feelings, and 
the best definition of his position, on the question of slavery, would 
be given, by such extracts, as have been made in this chapter, from 
his own speeches on different occasions, and at remote periods, of 
his life. His feelings are read, when he speaks of slavery in the 
abstract — so far as a sensible man can so speak of it — unconnected 
with the political fabric of the country. These, it is believed, are 
such, as will be satisfactory to the strongest antislavery man in the 
republic. No man has ever expressed himself in stronger terms 
against slavery, than are found in some of the foregoing passages 
of Mr. Clay's speeches. But when he is called, as a public man, 
a statesman, and a patriot, to encounter the mad career and de- 
structive tendency of modern political abolition, he rushes to the 
defence of the constitution, and throws his shield between the na- 
tion's charter and its assailants. 

In reply to those, who may ask, why has not Mr. Clay liberated 
his own slaves, if he is in heart opposed to slavery ? — it may be 
said, that, as a public man, he could not disregard his position, 
acting discreetly for the greatest good. Instead of separating from 
society, by acts and reasons therefor assigned, which would rebuke 
and offend, and thus destroy his influence, it may reasonably be 
supposed, that his aim has been to act with society, and carry so- 
ciety along with him, in all his efforts for reform, social and politi- 
cal. The following remarks of Mr. Clay, to Mr. Mendenhall, are 
pertinent to this point : — 

" Without any knowledge of the relation in which I stand to my 
slaves, or their individual condition, you, Mr. Mendenhall, and 
your associates, who have been active in getting up this petition, 
call upon me forthwith to liberate the whole of them. Now let me 



230 MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 

tell you, that some half a dozen of them, from age, decreptitude, 
or infirmity, are wholly unable to gain a livelihood for themselves, 
and are a heavy charge upon me. Do you think that I should 
conform to the dictates of humanity by ridding myself of that charge, 
and sending them forth into the world, with the boon of liberty, to 
end a wretched existence in starvation ? Another class is composed 
of helpless infants, with or without improvident mothers. Do you 
believe, as a Christian, that I should perform my duty toward them 
by abandoning them to their fate ? Then there is another class who 
would not accept their freedom, if I would give it to them. I have 
for many years owned a slave that I wished would leave me, but he 
will not. What shall I do with that class ? 

" What my treatment of my slaves is you may learn from Charles, 
who accompanies me on this journey, and who has travelled with 
me over the greater part of the United States, and in both the Can- 
adas, and has had a thousand opportunities, if he had chosen to 
embrace them, to leave me. Excuse me, Mr. Mendenhall, for 
saying, that my slaves are as well fed and clad, look as sleek and 
hearty, and are quite as civil and respectful in their demeanor, and 
as little disposed to wound the feelings of any one, as you are. 
******* 

" I shall, Mr. Mendenhall, take your petition into respectful and 
deliberate consideration ; but, before I come to a final decision, I 
should like to know what you and your associates are willing to do 
for the slaves in my possession, if I should think proper to liberate 
them. I own about fifty, who are probably worth fifteen thousand 
dollars. To turn them loose upon society, without any means of 
subsistence or support, would be an act of cruelty. Are you wil- 
ling to raise and secure the payment of fifteen thousand dollars for 
their benefit, if I should be induced to free them ? The security 
of the payment of that sum would materially lessen the obstacle in 
the way of their emancipation." 

Mr. Clay, manifestly, does not believe, that slavery can be easi- 
ly or soon removed from this country ; he does not believe, that 
the European and African races can ever be amalgamated in blood, 
or in society, or that such is the design of Providence ; but his 
theory of relief from the evils of the present relations between the 
white and black population of this country, seems to contemplate 
a protracted period of patient endurance, wise legislation, humane 
treatment, and the application of such discreet and healing reme- 
dies, as shall, from time to time, be disclosed. He believes, evi- 
dently, that a cure will be found — that the great solvent of the 
problem will yet transpire. But he has no faith in the hasty and 
rash proposals of inexperienced novices. 



MR. CLAY ON DOMESTIC SLAVERY. 231 

It is manifest, tiiat the new movement, commonly, and with strict 
propriety, called political abolition, has done infinite harm to the 
cause of emancipation, and put it backward for a great length of 
time. The federal constitution is an insuperable obstacle to such a 
scheme ; or it must bend, break, and fall before it. Both can not 
stand and prospei. If the attachments of the people of the United 
States to that sacred instrument, are sufficient to maintain it, this 
storm that has been raised against it will die away, and those who 
alone are entitled, by the terms of that charter, to take the subject 
of emancipation in hand for political action, will doubtless return 
to it again, when no longer assailed by foreign interference. But 
they have been driven from that work in self-defence, and the known 
principles of human nature clearly indicate, that they are not likely 
to consent to emancipation in any form, till they are permitted to 
do it of their own accord, and in their own way, as other of the 
original states have done. Possibly it may be forced upon them ; 
but not without evils infinitely more fearful than that which it is 
designed to remedy ; not, probably, without disappointing its own 
design, aggravating the bondage it would break — such has been 
the effect already — overturning the government and institutions of 
the country, and erecting a despotism over the white, as well as 
over the black race. They who agitate for a revolution, instead 
of reforming society by peaceable modes, know not what they do. 

Vol. L— 14 



232 THE ADVOCATE OW 



CHAPTER XL 

THE ADVOCATE OF UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 

When Mr. Clay made a defence in the senate, in 1810, of 
President Madison's act of extending the jurisdiction of the United 
States, eastward from the Mississippi, to the river Perdido, against 
the claims of Spain, France being implicated as a party, he said : — 

" Believing, as I do, that our title against both powers is indis- 
putable, under the treaty of St. Ildefonso, between Spain and 
France, and the treaty between the French republic and the United 
States, I shall not inquire into the treachery, by which the king of 
Spain is alleged to have lost his crown ; nor shall I stop to discuss 
the question involved in the overthrow of the Spanish monarchy, 
and how far the power of Spain ought to be considered as merged 
in that of France. I shall leave the honorable gentleman from 
Delaware [Mr. Horsey] to mourn over the fortunes of the fallen 
Charles. / have no commiseration for princes. My sympathies 
are reserved for the great mass of mankind, and I own that the 
people of Spain have them most sincerely.''"' 

Here, it will be observed, is an incidental utterance of a broad 
and comprehensive sentiment: "I have no commiseration 
FOR PRINCES. My sympathies are reserved for the 

GREAT mass OF MANKIND." 

If the South American states, Greece, and other nations, that 
have been struggling for freedom since Mr. Clay cam^upon the 
pubhc stage, have failed, as yet, to attain to all that was most de- 
sirable, this disappointment does not detract from the virtue of 
those who sympathized with their condition under the despotism 
to which they were subjected, and who made generous efforts in 
their behalf. The South American states are most of them actu- 
ally free — all are free from European domination, and have made 
approximations toward freedom in its most important sense. Since 
the Spanish colonies acquired their independence, it has been a 
subject of congratulation among all lovers of freedom throughout 
the world ; and it is a characteristic of Great Britain, claiming, as 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 233 

she usually does, a monopoly of credit for philanthropy, and after 
having found it politic, for her own commercial objects, to acknowl- 
edge the independence of the revolted Spanish colonies, that the 
members of her government should claim to have taken lead in 
prompting and instrumentally securing that independence. But 
as it is not easy to revert the order of time, and make history read 
backward, such pretensions may gain some credit for assurance, 
but will be in an awkward position as regards truth. The order 
of events, in these annals, stands thus : Mr. Clay's efforts prevailed 
in 1820, in the shape of a resolution, to authorize the president to 
send ministers " to any of the governments of South America, 
which have established, and are maintaining their independence." 
In 1822, their independence was formally recognised by Congress ; 
and the first act of recognition of any of those states by the British 
government, was in 1824. The fact was, that Great Britain never 
did anything to promote the independence of the South American 
states, and she acknowledged it only when it was necessary to 
secure a market for her manufactures. The following letter will 
place this question in its true light : — 

" Washington, Jtme 23, 1827. 

" My dear Sir : I have just read Lord Grey's speech, and 
can not resist the desire I feel to send it to you. You will recog- 
nise in it sentiments 1 have expressed as regards Mr. Canning and 
the new South American states. If Earl Grey had been better 
informed, he would have said, that it was you who did most to 
call them into being. I say this in no idle spirit of praise, having 
always, abroad and at home, expressed the opinion, that, next to 
their own exertions, the South-Americans owe to you more than 
to any other man in either hemisphere, their independence, 
you having led the way to our acknowledgment of it. This is 
truth ; this is history. Without our acknowledgment, England 
would not have taken the step to this day. This is my belief. I 
give Mr. Canning no credit for the part he acted. It was forced 
upon him by our lead, which he never had the magnanimity to 
avow, but strove to claim all the merit for England, or rather for 
himself. 

" Richard Rush. 

" Mr. Clay." 

In 1826, Mr. Canning said, in the British house of commons : — 

" I admit that the entry of the French army into Spain, was a 
disparagement to Great Britain. Do you think, that for this dis- 
paragement to England, we have not been compensated ? I 



231 THE ADVOCATE OF 

looked, sir, at Spain, by another name than Spain. I looked upon 
that power as Spain and the Lidies. I looked at the Indies, and 
there I have called a new world into existence T'' 

But the dates already cited cast a very strong light on this 
assurance. 

The character of Mr. Rush as a resident minister of the United 
States at the court of London, and in other respects, supersedes 
the necessity of further evidence on this point, and presents Mr. 
Clay in his true position, in relation to the earliest friendly efforts, 
in any high and influential quarter of the civilized world, for the 
extension of freedom over South America ; and the fact of his 
having occupied this position in relation to those nations, and to 
that quarter of the world, is exactly coincident with the uniform 
character of his feelings toward all other nations and all other parts 
of the world: "I have no commiseration for princes. 
My sympathies are reserved for the great mass of 

MANKIND." 

It would have been unexpected, that the government of the 
United States, as such, should have proved so dilatory in its 
expressions of kind feeling toward the Spanish colonies in America, 
in their early struggles for freedom ; much more, that it should 
have been disposed so to interpret the duties of neutrality, as to be 
willing to put impediments in their path, and prevent their pur- 
chasing vessels from private citizens of the United States, at the 
instance of the Spanish minister at Washington, because he 
imagined (it might be true) that they were designed for hostilities 
against the mother-country. President Madison, it seems, was so 
far influenced as to send a message to Congress, December 26, 
1816, recommending a law to enable the executive to enforce neu- 
trality ; in other words, to prevent ships being built at Fell's Point, 
Baltimore, as was sujijwsed, to the order and for the use of the 
rebellious Spanish colonies ; and a bill was accordingly reported 
to that effect by Mr. Forsyth, of Georgia, chairman of the commit- 
tee of foreign relations in the house of representatives. While 
this bill was under debate, January 24, 1817, Mr. Clay said : — 

" As long as the government abstained from taking any part in 
the contest now carrying on in the southern part of this continent, 
it is unquestionably its duty to maintain a strict neutrality. On 
that point there was and could be no difference of opinion. It 
ought not, however, to be overlooked, that the two parties stood 
with this government on unequal ground. One of them had an 
accredited minister here, to watch over its interests, and to remoo- 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 235 

strate against any acts of which it might complain ; while the other, 
being wholly unrepresented, had no organ through which to com- 
municate its grievances. This inequality of condition in the con- 
tending parties, imposed upon us the duty of great circumspection 
and prudence in what we might do. 

" Whenever a war exists, whether between two independent 
states, or between parts of a common empire, he knew of but two 
relations in which other powers could stand toward the bellige- 
rents : the one was that of neutrality, and the other that of a bel- 
ligerent. 

" Being then in a state of neutrality respecting the contest, ana 
bound to maintain it, the question was, whether the provisions of 
the bill were necessary to the performance of that duty ? It will 
be recollected that we have an existing law, directed against arma- 
ments, such as are described in the bill. That law was passed in 
1794. It was intended to preserve our neutrality in the contest 
between France and her enemies. The circumstances under 
which it was passed, must be yet fresh in our recollection. The 
French revolution had excited a universal enthusiasm in the cause 
of liberty. The flame reached this country, and spread with elec- 
tric rapidity throughout the continent. There was not a state, 
county, city, or village, exempted from it. An ardent disposition 
to enter into the conflict, on the side of France, was everywhere 
felt. General Washington thought it the interest of this country 
to remain neutral, and the law of 1794 was enacted, to restrain our 
citizens from taking part in the contest. If that law had been 
effectual to preserve the neutrality of this country, during the 
stormy period of the French revolution, we ought to pause before 
we assent to the adoption of new penalties and provisions. If the 
law did not reach the case (which he understood to be doubtful 
from some judicial decisions), he was willing to legislate so far as 
to make it comprehend it. Further than that, as at present ad- 
vised, he was not willing to go. 

" But the present bill not only went further, but, in his judgment, 
contained provisions not demanded of us by our neutral duties. 
It contained two principles not embraced by the law of 1794. The 
first was, the requisition of a bond from the owners of armed ves- 
sels, that persons, to whom they might sell these vessels, should 
not use them in the contest. The second was, the power vested 
in the collectors to seize and detain, under certain circumstances, 
any such vessels. Now, with regard to the first provision, it is not 
denied that an armed vessel may be lawfully sold by an American 
citizen to a foreign subject, other than a subject of Spain. But on 
what ground is it possible, then, to maintain, that it is the duty of 
the American citizen to become responsible for the subsequent use 
which may be made of such vessel by the foreign subject? We 
are bound to take care that our own citizens do not violate our 



236 THE ADVOCATE OF 

neutrality, but we are under no such obligation as it respects the 
subjects of foreign powers. It is the business of those foreign 
powers to guard the conduct of their own subjects. If it be true, 
as he had heard it asserted, that Fell's Point exhibits an activity in 
hostile preparation, not surpassed during the late war, we had 
enough to do with our own citizens. It was not incumbent upon 
us, as a neutral power, to provide, after a legal sale had been made 
of an armed vessel to a foreign subject, against any illegal use of 
the vessel. 

" Gentlemen have contended, that this bill ought to be considered 
as intended merely to enforce our own laws — as a municipal regu- 
lation, having no relation to the war now existing. It was impos- 
sible to deceive ourselves, as to the true character of the measure. 
Bestow on it what denomination you please, disguise it as you 
may, it is a law, and will be understood by the whole world as a 
law, to discountenance any aid being given to the South American 
colonies in a state of revolution against the parent-country. With 
respect to the nature of that struggle, he had not now, for the first 
time, to express his opinion and his wishes. An honorable gen- 
tleman from Virginia [Mr. Sheffey] had said, the people of South 
America were incapable, from the ignorance and superstition which 
prevail among them, of achieving independence or enjoying lib- 
erty. And to what cause is that ignorance and superstition owing ? 
Was it not to the vices of their government ? to the tyranny and 
oppression, hierarchical and political, under which they groaned ? 
If Spain succeeded in riveting their chains upon them, would not 
that ignorance and superstition be perpetuated ? In the event of 
that success, he feared the time would never arrive, when the good 
wishes of the honorable gentleman from Virginia would be con- 
ciliated in behalf of that oppressed and suffering people. For his 
part, he wished their independence. It was the first step toward 
improving their condition. Let them have free government, if they 
be capable of enjoying it ; but let them have, at all events, inde- 
pendence. Yes, from the inmost recesses of my soul, I wish them 
independence. I may be accused of an imprudent utterance of 
my feelings, on this occasion. I care not : when the indepen- 
dence, the happiness, the liberty of a whole people is at stake, and 
that people our neighbors, our brethren, occupying a portion of the 
same continent, imitating our example, and participating of the 
same sympathies with ourselves, I will boldly avow my feelings 
and my wishes in their behalf, even at the hazard of such an 
imputation." 

It will be seen by the above citation, that this was not the first 
time that Mr. Clay had " expressed his opinion and wishes with 
respect to the nature and object of that struggle." 

In Mr. Monroe's first annual message, of December, 1817, he 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 237 

said . " Through every stage of the conflict [between Spain and 
her colonies], the United States have maintained an impartial 
neutrality. They have regarded the contest, not in the light of 
an ordinary insurrection or rebellion, but as a civil war between 
parties nearly equal, having, as to neutral powers, equal rights." 
This, obviously, was so far favorable to the colonies. When this 
part of the message was to be referred, by resolution, Mr. Clay 
moved the following amendment : — 

" And that the said committee be instructed to inquire, whether 
any, and, if any, what provisions of law are necessary to insure, to 
the American colonies of Spain, a just observance of the duties 
incident to the neutral relation in which the United States stand, 
in the existing war between them and Spain." 

The reason of this amendment was stated by Mr. Clay, as fol- 
lows : — 

" That nine or ten British disbanded officers had formed in Eu- 
rope the resolution to unite themselves with the Spanish patriots 
in the contest existing between them and Spain ; that, to carry 
into effect this intention, they had sailed from Europe, and in 
their transit to South America, had touched at the port of Phila- 
delphia ; that during their residence in Philadelphia, wearing per- 
haps the arms and habiliments of military men. making no dis- 
guise of their intention to participate in the struggle, they took 
passage in a vessel bound to some port in South America ; that a 
knowledge of this fact having come to the ears of the public au- 
thorities, or, perhaps, at the instigation of some agent of the Span- 
ish government, a prosecution was commenced against these offi- 
cers, who, from their inability to procure bail, were confined in 
prison. ******* 

" Other cases had occurred, in which it appeared to him it be- 
came the Congress to interpose its authority. Persons sailing un- 
der the flag of the provinces had been arraigned in our courts, 
and tried for piracy ; in one case, after having been arraigned, 
tried, and acquitted of piracy, the same individuals, on the insti- 
gation of a Spanish officer or agent, had been again arraigned for 

the same offence. 

******** 

'* Let us recollect the condition of the patriots : no minister 
here to spur on our government, as was said in an interesting, and, 
it appeared to him, a very candid work, recently published in this 
country, respecting the progress of the South American revolu- 
tion ; no minister here to be rewarded by noble honors, in conse- 
quence of the influence he is supposed to possess with the Ameri- 
can government. No ; their unfortunate case was what ours had 



238 THE ADVOCATE OF 

been, in the years 1778 and 1779 ; their ministers, like our Frank- 
lins and Jays at that day, were skulking about Europe, imploring 
inexorable legitimacy for one kind look — some aid to terminate a 
war afflicting to humanity. Nay, their situation was worse than 
ours : for we had one great and magnanimous ally to recognise 
us, but no nation had stepped forward to acknowledge any of 
these provinces. Such disparity between the parties demanded a 
just attention to the interests of the party which was unrepresent- 
ed ; and if the facts which he had mentioned, and others which 
had come to his knowledge, were correct, they loudly demanded 
the interposition of Congress. He trusted the house would give 
the subject their attention, and show that here, in this place, the 
obligations of neutrality would be strictly regarded in respect to 
South America." 

This amendment was carried without opposition. 

In the summer of 1817, President Monroe appointed three 
commissioners, Messrs. Rodney, Graham, and Bland, to proceed 
to South America, to obtain information of the actual condition 
and political prospects of the Spanish provinces, which were con- 
tending for independence ; and when the appropriation to defray 
the expenses of these missions came up for consideration at the 
next session of Congress, the house being in committee, March 
24, 1818, Mr. Clay moved to amend the bill by adding : " And 
♦ for one year's salary and an outfit to a minister to the United 
Provinces of Rio de La Plata, the salary to commence, and the 
outfit to be paid, whenever the president shall deem it expedient 
to send a minister to the said United Provinces, a sum not exceed- 
ing eighteen thousand dollars.' " 

It will be perceived, that this amendment amounted to a recog- 
nition of the independence of those provinces, and went to pro- 
vide for the support of a minister there, being virtually a law of 
instructions and authority for the president to act upon. It was a 
step — a large step in advance, not only of the country and of the 
government, but of the whole civilized world. The daring phi- 
lanthropy of this proposal presents a spectacle of moral sublimity, 
which, the longer it stands in history, will be the more admired. 
By his argument on this occasion, Mr. Clay brought friends to 
his support ; but he was alone in originating the movement. 

" I rise, said Mr. Clay, under feelings of deeper regret than I 
have ever experienced on any former occasion, inspired, princi- 
pally, by the painful consideration, that I find myself, on the propo- 
sition which I meant to submit, differing from many highly- 
esteemed friends, in and out of this house, for whose judgment I 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 239 

entertained the greatest respect. A knowledge of this circum- 
stance has induced me to pause ; to subject my own convictions 
to the severest scrutiny, and to revolve the question over and over 
again. But all my reflections have conducted me to the same 
clear result ; and, much as I value those friends, great as my def- 
erence is for their opinions, I can not hesitate, when reduced to 
the distressing alternative of conforming my judgment to theirs, or 
pursuing the dehberate and mature dictates of my own mind. I 
enjoy some consolation, for the want of their co-operation, from 
the persuasion that, if I err on this occasion, I err on the side of 
the liberty and happiness of a large portion of the human family. 
Another, and, if possible, indeed a greater source of the regret 
to which I refer, is the utter incompetency, which I unfeignedly 
feel, to do anything like adequate justice to the great cause of 
American independence and freedom, whose interests I wish to 
promote by my humble exertions in this instance. Exhausted 
and worn down as I am, by the fatigue, confinement, and inces- 
sant application, incident to the arduous duties of the honorable 
station I hold, during a four months' session, I shall need all that 
kind indulgence which has been so often extended to me by the 
house. 

" I beg, in the first place, to correct misconceptions, if any exist, 
in regard to my opinions. I am averse to war with Spain, or with 
any power. I would give no just cause of war to any power — 
not to Spain herself. I have seen enough of war, and of its ca- 
lamities, even when successful. No country upon earth has more 
interest than this in cultivating peace and avoiding war, as long as 
it is possible honorably to avoid it. Gaining additional strength 
every day ; our numbers doubling in periods of twenty-five 
years ; with an income outstripping all our estimates, and so great, 
as, after a war in some respects disastrous, to furnish results which 
carry astonishment, if not dismay, into the bosom of states jealous 
of our rising importance ; we have every motive for the love of 
peace. I can not, however, approve, in all respects, of the man- 
ner in which our negotiations with Spain have been conducted. 
If ever a favorable time existed for the demand, on the part of an 
injured nation, of indemnity for past wrongs from the aggressor, 
such is the present time. Impoverished and exhausted at home, 
by the wars which have desolated the peninsula ; with a foreign 
war, calling for infinitely more resources, in men and money, than 
she can possibly command, this is the auspicious period for insist- 
ing upon justice at her hands, in a firm and decided tone. Time 
is precisely what Spain now most wants. Yet what are we told 
by the president, in his message at the commencement of Con- 
gress ? That Spain had procrastinated, and we acquiesced in her 
procrastination. And the secretary of state, in a late communi- 
cation with Mr. Onis, after ably vindicating all our rights, tells the 



240 THE ADVOCATE OF 

Spanish minister, with a good deal of sang froid, that we had pa- 
tiently waited thirteen years for a redress of our injuries, and that 
it required no great effort to wait longer ! I would have abstained 
from thus exposing our intentions. Avoiding the use of the lan- 
guage of menace, I would have required, in temperate and deci- 
ded terms, indemnity for all our wrongs ; for the spoliations of 
our commerce ; for the interruption of the right of depot at New 
Orleans, guarantied by treaty ; for the insults repeatedly offered 
to our flag ; for the Indian hostilities, which she was bound to 
prevent ; for belligerent use made of her ports and territories, by 
our enemy, during the late war ; and the instantaneous liberation 
of the free citizens of the United States, now imprisoned in her 
jails. Contemporaneous with that demand, without waiting for 
her final answer, and with a view to the favorable operation on 
her councils in regard to our own peculiar interests, as well as in 
justice to the cause itself, I would recognise any established gov- 
ernment in Spanish America. I would have left Spain to draw her 
own inferences from these proceedings, as to the ultimate step 
which this country might adopt, if she longer withheld justice 
from us. And if she persevered in her iniquity, after we have 
conducted the negotiation in the manner I have endeavored to de- 
scribe, I would then take up and decide the solemn question of 
peace or war, with the advantage of all the light shed upon it, by 
subsequent events, and the probable conduct of Europe." 

The following sentiment, incidentally dropped in this debate, 
deprecating war, is fit for any place : — 

" War is one of those dreadful scourges, that so shakes the 
foundations of society, overturns or changes the character of gov- 
ernments, interrupts or destroys the pursuits of private happiness, 
brings, in short, misery and wretchedness in so many forms, and 
at last is, in its issue, so doubtful and hazardous, that nothing but 
dire necessity can justify an appeal to arms. 

" If we are to be involved in a war with Spain, let us have the 
credit of disinterestedness. Let us put her yet more in the wrong. 
Let us command the respect which is never withheld from those 
who act a noble and generous part. I hope to communicate to the 
committee the conviction which I so strongly feel, that the adop- 
tion of the amendment which I intend to propose, would not hazard, 
in the slightest degree, the peace of the country. But if that peace 
is to be endangered, I would infinitely rather it should be for our 
exerting the right appertaining to every state, of acknowledging the 
independence of another state, than for the seizure of a province 
[Florida], which, sooner or later, we must certainly acquire. 

" In contemplating the great struggle in which Spanish America 
is now engaged, our attention is first fixed by the immensity and 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 241 

character of the country which Spain seeks again to subjugate. 
Stretching on the Pacific ocean, from about the fortieth degree of 
north latitude to about the fifty-fifth degree of south latitude, and 
extending from the mouth of the Rio del Norte (exclusive of East 
Florida), around the gulf of Mexico, and along the South Atlantic 
to near Cape Horn ; it is about five thousand miles in length, and 
in some places near three thousand in breadth. Within this vast 
region we behold the most sublime and interesting objects of crea- 
tion : the loftiest mountains, the most majestic rivers, in the world ; 
the richest mines of the precious metals, and the choicest produc- 
tions of the earth. We behold there a spectacle still more inter- 
esting and sublime — the glorious spectacle of eighteen millions of 
people, strugghng to burst their chains and to be free. When we 
take a little nearer and more detailed view, we perceive that nature 
has, as it were, ordained that this people and this country shall ul- 
timately constitute several different nations. Leaving the United 
States on the north, we come to New Spain, or the viceroyalty of 
Mexico on the south ; passing by Guatemala, we reach the vice- 
royalty of New Grenada, the late captain-generalship of Venezuela, 
and Guiana, lying on the east side of the Andes. Stepping over 
the Brazils, we arrive at the United Provinces of La Plata; and 
crossing the Andes, we find GhiU on their west side, and, further 
north, the viceroyalty of Lima, or Peru. Each of these several 
parts is sufficient in itself, in point of limits, to constitute a power- 
ful state ; and, in point of population, that which has the smallest, 
contains enough to make it respectable. Throughout all the ex- 
tent of that great portion of the world, which I have attempted thus 
hastily to describe, the spirit of revolt against the dominion of 
Spain has manifested itself. The revolution has been attended 
with various degrees of success in the several parts of Spanish 
America. In some it has been already crowned, as I shall en- 
deavor to show, with complete success, and in all I am persuaded 
that independence has struck such deep root, that the power of 
Spain can never eradicate it. What are the causes of this great 
movement ? 

" Three hundred years ago, upon the ruins of the thrones of 
Montezuma and the incas of Peru, Spain erected the most stupen- 
dous system of colonial despotism that the world has ever seen — 
the most vigorous, the most exclusive. The great principle and 
object of this system has been, to render one of the largest portions 
of the world exclusively subsc vient, in all its faculties, to the in- 
terests of an inconsiderable apot in Europe. To effectuate this 
aim of her policy, she locked up Spanish America from all the 
rest of the world, and prohibited, under the severest penalties, any 
foreigner from entering any part of it. To keep the natives them- 
selves ignorant of each other, and of the strength and resources of 
the several parts of her American possessions, she next prohibited 



242 THE ADVOCATE OF 

the inhabitants of one viceroyalty or government from visiting those 
of another ; so that the inhabitants of Mexico, for example, were 
not allowed to enter the viceroyalty of New Grenada. The agri- 
culture of those vast regions was so regulated and restrained, as to 
prevent all collision with the agriculture of the peninsula. Where 
nature, by the character and composition of the soil, had com- 
manded, the abominable system of Spain has forbidden, the growth 
of certain articles. ******* 

Wherever in America her sway extends, everything seems to 
pine and wither beneath its baneful influence. The richest regions 
of the earth : man, his happiness and his education, all the fine 
faculties of his soul, are regulated, and modified, and moulded, to 
suit the execrable purposes of an inexorable despotism. 

" Such is a brief and imperfect picture of the state of things in 
Spanish America, in 1808, when the famous transactions of Ba- 
yonne occurred. The king of Spain and the Indies (for Spanish 
America has always constituted an integral part of the Spanish 
empire) abdicated his throne and became a voluntary captive. Even 
at this day, one does not know whether he should most condemn 
the baseness and perfidy of the one party, or despise the meanness 
and imbecility of the other. If the obligation of obedience and al- 
legiance existed on the part of the colonies to the king of Spain, 
it was founded on the duty of protection which he owed them. 
By disqualifying himself for the performance of this duty, they be- 
came released from that obligation. The monarchy was dissolved ; 
and each integral part had a right to seek its own happiness, by 
the institution of any new government adapted to its wants. Joseph 
Bonaparte, the successor de facto of Ferdinand, recognised this 
right on the part of the colonies, and recommended them to estab- 
lish their independence. Thus, upon the ground of strict right — 
upon the footing of a mere legal question, governed by forensic 
rules, the colonies, being absolved by the acts of the parent-coui?- 
try from the duty of subjection to it, had an indisputable right to 
set up for themselves. But I take a broader and bolder position. 
I maintain, that an oppressed people are authorized, whenever they 
can, to rise and break their fetters. This was the great principle 
of the English revolution. It was the great principle of our own. 
Vattel, if authority were wanting, expressly supports this right. 
We must pass sentence of condemnation upon the founders of our 
liberty, say that they were rebels, traitors, and that we are at this 
moment legislating without competent powers, before we can con- 
demn Spanish America. Our revolution was mainly directed 
against the mere theory of tyranny. We had suffered compara- 
tively but little ; we had, in some respects, been kindly treated ; 
but our intrepid and intelligent fathers saw, in the usurpation of 
the power to levy an inconsiderable tax, the long train of oppres- 
sive acts that were to follow. They rose ; they breasted the storm * 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 243 

they achieved our freedom. Spanish America for centuries has 
been doomed to the practical effects of an odious tyranny. If we 
were justified, she is more than justified. 

" I am no propagandist. I would not seek to force upon other 
nations our principles and our liberty, if they do not want them. 
[ would not disturb the repose even of a detestable despotism. 
But, if an abused and oppressed people will their freedom ; if they 
seek to estabUsh it ; if, in truth, they have established it ; we have 
a right, as a sovereign power, to notice the fact, and to act as cir- 
cumstances and our interest require. I will say, in the language 
of the venerated father of my country, ' born in a land of liberty, 
my anxious recollections, my sympathetic feelings, and my best 
wishes, are irresistibly excited, whensoever, in any country, 1 see 
an oppressed nation unfurl the banners of freedom.' Whenever I 
think of Spanish America, the image irresistibly forces itself upon 
ray mind, of an elder brother, whose education has been neglected, 
whose person has been abused and maltreated, and who has been 
disinherited by the unkindness of an unnatural parent. And, when 
I contemplate the glorious struggle which that country is now ma- 
king, I think J behold that brother rising, by the power and energy 
of his fine native genius, to the manly rank which nature, and na- 
ture's God, intended for him. 

" If Spanish America be entitled to success from the justness 
of her cause, we have no less reason to wish that success, from the 
horrible character which the royal arms have given to the war. 
More atrocities, than those which have been perpetrated during its 
existence, are not to be found, even in the annals of Spain herself. 
And history, reserving some of her blackest pages for the name of 
Morillo, is prepared to place him by the side of his great prototype, 
the infamous desolator of the Netherlands. He who has looked 
into the history of the conduct of this war, is constantly shocked 
at the revolting scenes which it portrays ; at the refusal, on the 
part of the commanders of the royal forces, to treat, on any terms, 
with the other side ; at the denial of quarters ; at the butchery, in 
cold blood, of prisoners ; at the violation of flags in some cases, 
after being received with religious ceremonies ; at the instigation 
of slaves to rise against their owners ; and at acts of wanton and 
useless barbarity. Neither the weakness of the other sex, nor the 
imbecility of infants, nor the reverence due to the sacerdotal char- 
acter, can stay the arm of royal vengeance." 

To support the right of his position, and the truth of his state- 
ments, Mr. Clay cites the manifesto of the United Provinces of 
Rio de La Plata, published in October, 1817, a document pre- 
cisely the same in character with the declaration of American in- 
dependence of 1776 ; and the injuries and atrocities recited as 



244 THE ADVOCATE OF 

ground of action, are horriole to contemplate. Mr. Clay then 
proceeds : — 

" In the establishment of the independence of Spanish America, 
the United States have the deepest interest. I have no hesitation 
in asserting my firm belief, that there is no question in the foreign 
policy of this country, which has ever arisen, or which I can 
conceive as ever occurring, in the decision of which we have had 
or can have so much at stake. This interest concerns our politics, 
our commerce, our navigation. There can not be a doubt that 
Spanish America, once independent, whatever may be the form of 
the governments established in its several parts, these governments 
will be animated by an American feeling and guided by an 
American policy. They will obey the laws of the system of the 
new world, of which they will compose a part, in contradistinc- 
tion to that of Europe. Without the influence of that vortex in 
Europe, the balance of power between its several parts, the preser- 
vation of which has so often drenched Europe in blood, America is 
sufficiently remote to contemplate the new wars which are to afflict 
that quarter of the globe, as a calm, if not a cold and indifferent 
spectator. In relation to those wars, the several parts of America 
will generally stand neutral. And as, during the period when they 
rage, it will be important that a liberal system of neutrality should 
be adopted and observed, all America will be interested in main- 
taining and enforcing such a system. The independence of Span- 
ish America, then, is an interest of primary consideration. Next 
to that, and highly important in itself, is the consideration of the 
nature of their governments. That is a question, however, for 
themselves. They will, no doubt, adopt those kinds of govern- 
ments which are best suited to their condition, best calculated for 
their happiness. Anxious as I am that they should be free 
governments, we have no right to prescribe for them. They are, 
and ought to be, the sole judges for themselves. I am strongly 
inclined to believe that they will in most, if not all parts of their 
country, establish free governments. We are their great exaniple. 
Of us they constantly speak as of brothers, having a similar origin. 
They adopt our principles, copy our institutions, and, in many 
instances, employ the very language and sentiments of our revolu- 
tionary papers. * #»♦»** 

" But it is sometimes said, that they are too ignorant and too 
superstitious to admit of the existence of free government. This 
charge of ignorance is often urged by persons themselves actually 
ignorant of the real condition of that people. I deny the alleged 
fact of ignorance ; I deny the inference from that fact, if it were 
true, that they want capacity for free government; and I refuse 
assent to the further conclusion, if the fact were true, and the 
inference just, that we are to be indifferent to their fate. All the 



tJXIVERSAL FREEDOM. 245 

writers of the most established authority, Depons, Humboldt, and 
others, concur in assigning to the people of Spanish America great 
quickness, genius, and particular aptitude for the acquisition of the 
exact sciences, and others which they have been allowed to culti- 
vate. In astronomy, geology, mineralogy, chymistry, botany, and 
so forth, they are allowed to make distinguished proficiency. They 
justly boast of their Abzate, Velasques, and Gama, and other 
illustrious contributors to science. They have nine universities, 
and in the city of Mexico, it is affirmed by Humboldt, that there 
are more solid scientific establishments than in any city even of 
North America. I would refer to the message of the supreme 
director of La Plata, which I shall hereafter have occasion to use 
for another purpose, as a model of fine composition of a state 
paper, challenging a comparison with any, the most celebrated, 
that ever issued from the pens of Jefferson or Madison. Gentle- 
men will egregiously err, if they form their opinions of the present 
moral condition of Spanish America, from what it was under the 
debasing system of Spain. The eight years' revolution in which 
it has been engaged, has already produced a powerful effect. 
Education has been attended to, and genius developed. 

"It is the doctrine of thrones, that man is too ignorant to govern 
himself. Their partisans assert his incapacity, in reference to all 
nations ; if they can not command universal assent to the proposi- 
tion, it is then demanded as to particular nations : and our pride 
and our presumption too often make converts of us. I contend, 
that it is to arraign the dispositions of Providence himself, to sup- 
pose that he has created beings incapable of governing themselves, 
and to be trampled on by kings. Self-government is the natural 
government of man, and for proof, I refer to the aborigines of our 
own land. Were I to speculate in hypotheses unfavorable to hu- 
man liberty, my speculations should be founded rather upon the 
vices, refinements, or density of population. Crowded together 
in compact masses, even if they were philosophers, the contagion 
of the passions is communicated and caught, and the effect too 
often, I admit, is the overthrow of liberty. Dispersed over such 
an immense space as that on which the people of Spanish America 
are spread, their physical, and I believe also their moral condition, 
both favor their liberty. 

'• With regard to their superstition, they worship the same God 
with us. Their prayers are offered up in their temples to the same 
Redeemer, whose intercession we expect to save us. Nor is diere 
anything in the catholic religion unfavorable to freedom. All 
religions united with government, are more or less inimical to lib- 
eny. All, separated from government, are compatible with liberty. 
If the people of Spanish America have not already gone as far in 
religious toleration as we have, the difference in their condition 



246 



THE ADVOCATE OF 



from ours should not be forgotten. Everything is progressive, 
and in time, I hope to see them imitating, in this respect, our 
example. But grant that the people of Spanish America are 
ignorant, and incompetent for free government, to whom is that 
ignorance to be ascribed? Is it not to the execrable system of 
Spain, which she seeks again to establish and to perpetuate? So 
far from chilling our hearts, it ought to increase our solicitude for 
our unfortunate brethren. It ought to animate us to desire the 
redemption of the minds and the bodies of unborn millions, from 
the brutifying effects of a system, whose tendency is to stifle the 
faculties of the soul, and to degrade man to the level of beasts. I 
would invoke the spirits of our departed fathers. Was it for your- 
selves only that you nobly fought? No, no! It was the chains 
that were forging for your posterity, that made you fly to arms, and 
scattering the elements of these chains to the winds, you transmit- 
ted to us the rich inheritance of liberty." 

Mr. Clay proceeds to show the vast commercial advantages that 
would result to the United States, from the recognition of the in- 
dependence of Spanish America — not that he proposed to act on 
this sordid principle — but to meet the argument of opponents based 
upon it. It appears by official documents, that the foreign trade 
of the United States with the American family of nations, states, 
and colonies, for the year ending June 30, 1844, is at least one 
quarter of the foreign trade with all the rest of the world. 

Nevertheless, though the argument on this point was abun- 
dantly strong, with less information than can now be obtained, which 
greatly strengthens it, to show how much Mr. Clay rose above the 
influence of such considerations, he says: "There is something 
so narrow, and selfish, and grovelling, in this argument, something 
so unworthy the magnanimity of a great and a generous people, 
that I confess I have scarcely patience to notice it." The follow- 
ing isolated statement, incidentally thrown in, is worthy of pro- 
found reflection, and will naturally lead to it : — 

"I see, and I own it with infinite regret, a tone and a feeling in 
the councils of the country, infinitely below that which belongs to 
the country. It is, perhaps, the moral consequence of the exer- 
tions of the late war. We are alarmed at dangers, we know not 
what ; by spectres conjured up by our own vivid imaginations. 

" The West India bill is brought up. We shrug our shoulders, 
talk of restrictions, non-intercourse, embargo, commercial welfare, 
make long faces, and — postpone the bill. The time will however 
come, must come, when this country will not submit to a com- 
merce with the British colonies, upon the terms which England 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 247 

alone prescribes. And I repeat, when it arrives, Spanish America 
will afford us an ample substitute." 

It will not be out of place to pause here, and contemplate for a 
moment the spectacle presented, of a sohtary individual, occupying 
such a position, pleading such a cause, in advance of his own 
country, of his own government, of all around him, of the whole 
civilized world, of the age. "He looked upon Spain and the In- 
dies ;" and what did he find to be their relations and condition ? 
It is already told. " The Indies," numbering some twenty millions 
of people, had declared for freedom against the most oppressive 
and most inhuman despotism that the world ever knew ; they had 
succeeded, in nearly all quarters, in driving the forces of Spain 
from their soil ; they occupied a most favorable position, geograph- 
ically and politically, for maintaining independence and establish- 
ing free institutions ; they were compelled to do so, or fall back 
under a government that would be a thousand times more aggra- 
vated in its character than the atrocities which had before been 
committed; they were poor (how could it be otherwise?), alleged 
to be ignorant (who could blame them for that"?), and accused of 
superstition (how could they get rid of it under Spain ?) ; they 
were remote from other portions of the civilized world, and few 
cared for them ; they occupied nature's most fruitful garden, and 
were surrounded by her prodigal magnificence ; rich in the Crea- 
tor's best gifts, but most abused by man's worst vice, the lust of 
empire ; invoking and requiring nothing but the costless aid of 
sympathy, but stretching out their hands to Europe, whence they 
came, in vain for such a boon ; it was the interest of the govern- 
ments of Europe, in support of the claims of a tottering legitimacy, 
to see them resubjugated ; and their only hope was turned to the 
NORTH — to their brethren of the United States. And what did they 
get there? The answer is found in a short speech of Mr. Clay, 
at a dinner in Lexington, June 7, 1820 : — 

" The executive had deemed it proper to pay some regard to 
the views and wishes of other nations, while his [Mr. Clay's] de- 
sire had been to pursue a course exclusively American, uninflu- 
enced by the policy of my Lord Castlereagh, Count Nesselrode, or 
any other of the great men of Europe. The executive had been 
endeavoring, by negotiation, to procure a simultaneous acknowl- 
edgment by the European powers and ourselves, of the independ 
ence of South America, while he [Mr. Clay] had been anxious 
that we should act without delay, and without concert with other 
nations." 

Vol. I.— 15 



248 THE ADVOCATE OF 

It will be seen, therefore, that in this great cause, Mr. Clay stood 
alone, the advocate of freedom for twenty millions of the human 
family, occupying about one third of the American continent, 
the most beautiful, the most prolific, and the grandest, which the 
sun ever shone upon. And he came boldly forward when they 
had need of help — when the slightest aid, from such a quarter, 
might be of the greatest importance. Europe paused ; the gov- 
ernment of the United States paused ; the world paused ; when 
the liberties of a third of this western world were pending ; but 
one man, sitting in the councils of the North American republic, 
and presiding over one of the branches of its legislature, did not 

PAUSE. 

It was maintained in this debate, in opposition to Mr. Clay, that 
recognition is cause of war. Mr. Clay acknowledged, that, " with 
aid, it is — not because of the recognition, but because of the aid — 
as aid, without recognition, is cause of war. The truth of these 
propositions I will maintain upon principle, by the practice of other 
states, and by the usage of our own. There is no common tribu- 
nal among nations, to pronounce upon the fact of the sovereignty 
of a new state. Each power does, and must judge for itself. It 
is an attribute of sovereignty so to judge. A nation, in exercising 
this incontestable right, in pronouncing upon the independence, in 
fact, of a new state, takes no part in the war." 

What was to be done ? Were the United States, was the world, 
to wait for Spain to acknowledge the independence of her revolted 
provinces ? It was eighty years before she acknowledged the in- 
dependence of the " United Provinces," though they had been re- 
ceived into the family of nations by the rest of Europe. Spain 
did not declare war against England, under Queen Elizabeth, till 
this princess had given aid to Holland. In the case of the Amer- 
ican revolution, it was not till France had given aid to the colonies, 
that England declared war against France ; and it was solely on 
account of such aid — not for diplomatic relations and intercourse. 
It was not till Holland was about to enter into a treaty with the 
North American colonies, during the revolution, that England 
declared war. The United States had always acted on the princi- 
ple of recognising the government dcfacto^ of any nation, without 
regard to de jure claims from any quarter. Presidents Washing- 
ton, Jefferson, and Madison, acted on this principle. In the cas» 
of the French republic. President Washington did not wait, as Mr 
Monroe proposed to do, in the case of the South American states 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 249 

for the action of the crowned heads of Europe ; but he accredited 
the French minister at once— even before the government of the 
republic was considered as established. President Washington 
did not inquire, as a preliminary, into the claims of the Bourbons; 
but he recognised the actual government, which had just overthrown 
the Bourbon dynasty. " In all the phases of the French govern- 
ment," said Mr. Clay — " republic, directory, consuls, consul for 
life, emperor, king, emperor again, king — our government has uni- 
formly received the minister." It followed, that the governments 
de facto of South America, should be acknowledged. 

Mr. Clay went on to show, that the United Provinces of Rio 
de La Plata, had a valid claim to be recognised, as his amend- 
ment proposed — more so, even, in many respects, than the thir- 
teen North American British colonies, during the war of the rev 
olution. He then cites the message of the supreme director ol 
those provinces to their Congress — one of the most dignified, elo 
quent, and commanding state-papers to be found in the archives 
of political history — upon which he says : — 

" There is a spirit of bold confidence running through this fine 
state paper, which nothing but conscious strength could commu- 
nicate. Their armies, their magazines, their finances, are on the 
most solid and respectable footing. And, amidst all the cares of 
war, and those incident to the consolidation of their new institu- 
tions, leisure is found to promote the interests of science, and the 
education of the rising generation. It is true, the first part of the 
message portrays scenes of difficulty and commotion, the usual 
attendants upon revolution. The very avowal of their troubles 
manifests, however, that they are subdued. And what state, 
passing through the agitation of a great revolution, is free from 
them ? We had our tories, our intrigues, our factions. More 
than once were the affections of the country, and the confidence 
of our councils, in the great father of our liberties, attempted to be 
shaken. Not a Spanish bayonet remains within the immense ex- 
tent of the territories of the La Plata, to contest the authority of 
the actual government. It is free, it is independent, it is sover- 
eign. It manages the interests of the society that submits to its 
sway. It is capable of maintaining the relations between that so- 
ciety and other nations. 

" Are we not bound, then, upon our own principles, to acknowl- 
edge this new republic ? If we do not, who will ? Are we to 
expect that kings will set us the example of acknowledging the 
only republic on earth, except our own ? We receive, promptly 
receive, a minister, from whatever king sends us one. From the 
great powers and the little powers, we accredit ministers. We 



250 THE ADVOCATE OF 

do more : we hasten to reciprocate the compHment ; and, anxious 
to manifest our gratitude for royal civihty, we send for a minister 
(as in the case of Sweden and the Netherlands) of the lowest 
grade, one of the highest rank recognised by our laws. We are 
the natural head of the American family. I would not intermed- 
dle in the affairs of Europe. We wisely keep aloof from their 
broils. I would not even intermeddle in those of other parts of 
America, further than to exert the incontestable rights appertain- 
ing to us as a free, sovereign, and independent power ; and I 
contend, that the accrediting of a minister from the new republic 
IS such a right. We are bound to receive their minister, if we 
mean to be really neutral. If the royal belligerent is represented 
and heard at our government, the republican belligerent ought also 
to be heard. Otherwise, one party will be in the condition of the 
poor patriots, who were tried ex-farte the other day, in the su- 
preme court, without counsel, without friends. Give Mr. Onis his 
conge, or receive the republican minister. Unless you do so, 
your neutrality is nominal." 

Mr. Clay next considers the probable consequences of the 
measure he proposed — first, that it could not lead to a war with 
Spain, on account of her imbecility, though it would be dishonora- 
ble to take advantage of that fact, to do a wrong. But this was 
right. Next : — 

" Will the allies interfere ? If, by the exertion of an unques- 
tionable attribute of a sovereign power, we should give no just 
cause of war to Spain herself, how can it be pretended that we 
should furnish even a specious pretext to the allies for making war 
upon us ? On what ground could they attempt to justify a rupture 
with us, for the exercise of a right which we hold in common with 
them, and with every other independent state? But we have a 
surer guarantee against their hostility, in their interests. That all 
the allies, who have any foreign commerce, have an interest in the 
independence of Spanish America, is perfectly evident. On what 
ground, I ask, is it likely, then, that they would support Spain, 
in opposition to their own decided interests ? To crush the spirit 
of revolt, and prevent the progress of free principles ? Nations, 
like individuals, do not sensibly feel, and seldom act upon dangers 
which are remote, either in time or place. Of Spanish America, 
but little is known by the great body of the population of Europe. 
Even in this country, the most astonishing ignorance prevails 
respecting it. Those European statesmen who are acquainted 
with the country, will reflect, that, tossed by a great revolution, it 
will most probably constitute four or five several nations, and that 
the ultimate modification of all their various governments is by no 
means absolutely certain. But I entertain no doubt that the 
principle of cohesion among the allies is gone. It was annihi- 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 251 

lated in the memorable battle of Waterloo. When the question 
was, whether one should engross all, a common danger united all. 
How long was it, even with a clear perception of that danger, be- 
fore an effective coalition could be formed ? How often did one 
power stand by unmoved and indifferent to the fate of its neighbor, 
although the destruction of that neighbor removed the only bar- 
rier to an attack upon itself? No ; the consummation of the 
cause of the allies was, and all history and all experience will 
prove it, the destruction of the alliance. The principle is totally 
changed. It is no longer a common struggle against the colossal 
power of Bonaparte, but it has become a common scramble for 
the spoils of his empire. There may, indeed, be one or two 
points on which a common interest still exists, such as the con- 
venience of subsisting their armies on the vitals of poor suffering 
France. But as for action, for new enterprises, there is no prin- 
ciple of unity, there can be no accordance of interests, or of 
views, among them. 

" What is the condition in which Europe is left, after all its ef- 
forts ? It is divided into two great powers, one having the undis- 
puted command of the land, the other of the water. Paris is 
transferred to St. Petersburgh, and the navies of Europe are at 
the bottom of the sea, or concentrated in the ports of England. 
Russia — that huge land animal — awing by the dread of her vast 
power all continental Europe, is seeking to encompass the Porte ; 
and constituting herself the kraken of the ocean, is anxious to lave 
her enormous sides in the more genial waters of the Mediterra- 
nean. It is said, I know, that she has indicated a disposition to 
take part with Spain. No such thing. She has sold some old 
worm-eaten, decayed fir-built ships to Spain, but the crews which 
navigate them are to return from the port of delivery, and the 
bonus she is to get, I believe to be the island of Minorca, in con- 
formity with the cardinal point of her policy. France is greatly 
interested in whatever would extend her commerce, and regenerate 
her marine, and consequently, more than any other power of Eu- 
rope, England alone excepted, is concerned in the independence 
of Spanish America." 

But Great Britain had a deep stake in the independence of 
Spanish America, as a market for her manufactures. She could 
not oppose it — would inevitably favor it. And so it has turned 
out. On this point, Mr. Clay said : — 

" In the case of the struggle between Spain and her colonies, 
England, for once, at least, has manifested a degree of wisdom 
highly deserving our imitation ; but, unfortunately, the very re- 
verse of her course has been pursued by us. She has so con- 
ducted, by operating upon the hopes of the two parties, as to 
keep on the best terms with both ; to enjoy all the advantages of 



252 THE ADVOCATE OF 

the rich commerce of both. We have, by a neutrality bill con- 
taining unprecedented features, and still more by a late executive 
measure, to say the least of it, of doubtful constitutional character, 
contrived to dissatisfy both parties. We have the confidence 
neither of Spain, nor the colonies. 

"If it be urged that, by avowing our wilHngness, in a legisla- 
tive act, to pay a minister not yet sent, and whom the president 
may think it improper to send abroad, we operate upon the presi- 
dent by all the force of our opinion ; it may be retorted, that 
when we are called upon to pay any minister, sent under similar 
circumstances, we are operated upon by all the force of the presi- 
dent's opinion. ****** 

" I am disposed to give to the president all the confidence 
which he must derive from the unequivocal expression of our will. 
This expression, I know, may be given in the form of an abstract 
resolution, declaratory of that will ; but I prefer at this time pro- 
posing an act of practical legislation. And if I have been so for- 
tunate as to communicate to the committee, in anything like that 
degree of strength in which I entertain them, the convictions that 
the cause of the patriots is just ; that the character of the war, as 
waged by Spain, should induce us to wish them success ; that we 
have a great interest in that success ; that this interest, as well as 
our neutral attitude, requires us to acknowledge any established 
government in Spanish America ; that the United Provinces of the 
river Plate is such a government; that we may safely acknowledge 
its independence, without danger of war from Spain, from the al- 
lies, or from England ; and that without unconstitutional interfe- 
rence with the executive power, with peculiar fitness, we may ex- 
press, in an act of appropriation, our sentiments, leaving him to 
the exercise of a just and responsible discretion ; I hope the commit- 
tee will adopt the proposition which I now have the honor of pre- 
senting to them, after a respectful tender of my acknowledgments 
for their attention and kindness, during, I fear, the tedious period 
I have been so unprofitably trespassing upon their patience." 

On the 28th of March, four days afterward, his amendment be- 
ing still under debate in committee, Mr. Clay took occasion for a 
rejoinder to the objections which, in the meantime, had been made 
to his proposal by several eloquent and able opponents, Messrs. 
Lowndes, of South Carolina; Forsyth, of Georgia; Smith, of 
Maryland ; Smyth and Nelson, of Virginia ; and Poindexter, of 
Mississippi : — 

" But, sir, it seems that a division of the republican party is 
about to be made by the proposition. Who is to furnish, in this 
respect, the correct criterion — whose conduct is to be the standard 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 253 

of orthodoxy ? What has been the great principle of the party to 
which the gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Nelson] refers, from the 
first existence of the government to the present day ? An attach- 
ment to liberty, a devotion to the great cause of humanity, of free- 
dom, of self-government, and of equal rights. If there is to be a 
division, as the gentleman says ; if he is going to leave us, who are 
following the old track, he may, in his new connexions, find a great 
variety of company, which, perhaps, may indemnify him for the 
loss of his old friends. What is the great principle that has dis- 
tinguished parties in all ages, and under all governments — demo- 
crats and federalists, whigs and tories, plebeians and patricians? 
The one, distrustful of human nature, appreciates less the influence 
of reason and of good dispositions, and appeals more to physical 
force ; the other party, confiding in human nature, relies much 
upon moral power, and applies to force as an auxiliary only to the 
operations of reason. All the modifications and denominations 
of political parties and sects may be traced to this fundamental 
distinction. It is that which separated the two great parties in this 
country. If there is to be a division in the republican party, I 
glory that I, at least, am found among those who are anxious for 
the advancement of human rights and of human liberty ; and the 
honorable gentleman who spoke of appealing to the public senti- 
ment, will find, when he does so, or I am much mistaken, that 
public sentiment is also on the side of public liberty and of human 
happiness. 

"But the gentleman from South Carolina [Mr. Lowndes] has 
told us, that the constitution has wisely confided to the executive 
branch of the government, the administration of the foreign inter- 
ests of the country. Has the honorable gentleman attempted to 
show, though his proposition be generally true, and will never be 
controverted by me, that we also have not our participation in the 
administration of the foreign concerns of the country, when we are 
called upon, in our legislative capacity, to defray the expenses of 
foreign missions, or to regulate commerce ? I stated, when up 
before, and I have listened in vain for an answer to the argument, 
that no part of the constitution says which shall have the prece- 
dence, the act of making the appropriation for paying a minister, or 
the act of sending one. I have contended, and now repeat, that 
either the acts of deputing and of paying a minister should be 
simultaneous ; or, if either has the preference, the act of appropri 
ating his pay should precede the sending of a minister. I chal 
lenge gentlemen to show me anything in the constitution, which 
directs that a minister shall be sent before his payment is provided 
for. **»♦*«» 

*' My theory of the constitution, on this particular subject, is, 
that Congress has the right of appropriating money for foreign mis- 
sions, the president the power to use it. The president having 



254 THE ADVOCATE OF 

the power, I am willing to say to him, ' Here is the money, which 
we alone have a right to appropriate, which will enable you to 
carry your power into effect, if it seems expedient to you.' " 

Mr. Clay also adduced several precedents in the history of the 
action of the government, to support this position. Though he 
had anticipated, he nevertheless had to combat, his opponents on 
the question in a commercial point of view, at the conclusion of 
which, having well refuted them, he again gave vent to the ex- 
pression of a loftier sentiment : — 

" It is too selfish, too mean a principle for this body to act on, 
to refuse its sympathy for the patriots of the south, because some 
little advantage of a commercial nature may be retained to us from 
their remaining in the present condition — which, however, I totally 
deny." 

In regard to a report from the state department on this subject, 
Mr. Clay said : — 

" I will pass over the report lately made to the house by the 
department of state, respecting the state of South America, with 
only one remark — that it appears to me to exhibit evidence of an 
adroit and experienced diplomatist, negotiating, or rather confer- 
ring on a subject with a young and inexperienced minister, from a 
young and inexperienced republic. From the manner in which 
this report was communicated, after a call for information so long 
made, and after a lapse of two months from the last date in the 
correspondence on the subject, I was mortified at hearing the 
report read. Why talk of the mode of recognition ! Why make 
objections to the form of the commission ? If the minister has not 
a formal power, why not tell him to send back for one ? Why 
ask of him to enumerate the particular states whose independence 
he wished acknowledged ? Suppose the French minister had 
asked of Franklin what number of states he represented ? ' Thir- 
teen, if you please,' Franklin would have replied. ' But, Mr. Frank- 
lin, will you tell me if Pennsylvania, whose capital is in possession 
of the British, be one of them?' What would Dr. Franklin have 
said ? It would have comported better with the frankness of the 
American character, and of American diplomacy, if the secretary, 
avoiding cavils about the form of the commission, had said to the 
minister of Buenos Ayres : ' At the present moment we do not in 
lend to recognise you, or to receive or to send a minister to you.' " 

It had been said, that " factions prevailed at Buenos Ayres." 
" Do not factions prevail everywhere?" said Mr. Clay. The fol- 
lowing defence of the chaplain of Congress, will be regarded with 
interest : — 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 255 

" The honorable gentleman from Georgia [Mr. Forsyth] com- 
menced his remarks the other day by an animadversion which he 
might well have spared, when he told us, that even the prayers of 
the chaplain of this house had been offered up in behalf of the 
patriots. And was it reprehensible, that an American chaplain, 
whose cheeks are furrowed by age, and his head as white as snow, 
who has a thousand times, during our own revolution, implored 
the smiles of Heaven on our exertions, should indulge in the pious 
and patriotic feelings flowing from his recollections of our own 
revolution ? Ought he to be subject to animadversion for so 
doing, in a place where he can not be heard ? Ought he to be 
subject to animadversion for soliciting the favor of Heaven on the 
same cause as that in which we fought the good fight, and acquired 
our independence ? I trust not. 

" The present state of facts, and not what has passed and gone 
in South America, must be consulted. At the present moment, 
the patriots of the south are fighting for liberty and independence — 
for precisely what we fought. But their revolution, the gentleman 
told the house, was stained by scenes which had not occurred in 
ours. If so, it was because execrable outrages had been commit- 
ted upon them by troops of the mother-country, which were not 
upon us. Can it be believed, if the slaves had been let loose upon 
us in the south, as they have been let loose in Venezuela ; if 
quarters had been refused ; capitulations violated — that General 
Washington, at the head of the armies of the United States, would 
not have resorted to retribution ? Retaliation is sometimes mercy — 
mercy to both parties. The only means by which the coward soul 
that indulges in such enormities can be reached, is to show to him 
that they will be visited by severe, but just retribution. There are 
traits in the history of this revolution, which show what deep root 
liberty has taken in South America. I will state an instance. 
The only hope of a wealthy and reputable family was charged, at 
the head of a small force, with the care of the magazine of the 
army. He saw that it was impossible to defend it. ' Go,' said he 
to his companions in arms, ' I alone am sufficient for its defence.' 
The assailants approached ; he applied a match and blew up the 
magazine, with himself, scattering death and destruction on his 
enemy. There is another instance of the intrepidity of a female 
of the patriot party. A lady in New Granada had given informa- 
tion to the patriot forces, of plans and instructions by which the 
capitol might be invaded. She was put upon the rack to divulge 
her accomplices. She bore the torture with the greatest fortitude, 
and died exclaiming : ' You shall not hear it from my mouth ; I 
wiH die, and may those live who can free my country.' 

" But the house has been asked, and asked with a triumph 
worthy of a better cause, why recognise this republic ? Where is 



256 THE ADVOCATE OF 

the use of it ? And is it possible that gentlemen can see no use 
in recognising this republic ? For what did this republic fight ? 
To be admitted into the family of nations. Tell the nations of 
the world, says Pueyrredon, in his speech, that we already belong 
to their illustrious rank. What would be the powerful conse- 
quences of a recognition of their claim ? I ask my honorable 
friend before me [General Bloomfield], the highest sanction of 
whose judgment in favor of my proposition, I fondly anticipate, 
with what anxious solicitude, during our revolution, he and his 
glorious compatriots turned their eyes to Europe and asked to be 
recognised? I ask him, the patriot of '76, how the heart re- 
bounded with joy, on the information that France had recognised 
us ? The moral influence of such a recognition, on the patriot of 
the south, will be irresistible. He will derive assurance from it, 
of his not having fought in vain. In the constitution of our natures 
there is a point, to which adversity may pursue us, without per- 
haps any worse effect than that of exciting new energy to meet it. 
Having reached that point, if no gleam of comfort breaks through 
the gloom, we sink beneath the pressure, yielding reluctantly to 
our fate, and in hopeless despair lose all stimulus to exertion. 
And is there not reason to fear such a fate to the patriots of La 
Plata? Already enjoying independence for eight years, their 
ministers are yet spurned from the courts of Europe, and rejected 
by the government of a sister republic. Contrast this conduct of 
ours with our conduct in other respects. No matter whence the 
minister comes, be it from a despotic power, we receive him : and 
even now, the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Smith] would have 
us send a minister to Constantinople, to beg a passage through the 
Dardanelles to the Black sea, that, I suppose, we might get 
some hemp and bread-stuffs there, of which we ourselves pro- 
duce none ; he, who can see no advantage to the country from 
opening to its commerce the measureless resources of South 
America, would send a minister to Constantinople for a litde 
trade. Nay, I have seen a project in the newspapers, and I 
should not be surprised, after what we have already seen, at its 
being carried into effect, for sending a minister to the Porte. 
Yes, sir, from Constantinople, or from the Brazils ; from Turk 
or Christian ; from black or white ; from the bey of Algiers or 
the bey of Tunis ; from the devil himself, if he wore a crown, 
we should receive a minister. We even paid the expenses 
of the minister of his sublime highness, the bey of Tunis, and 
thought ourselves highly honored by his visit. But, let the min- 
ister come from a poor republic, like that of La Plata, and we 
turn our back on him. The brilliant costumes of the ministers of 
the royal governments are seen glistening in the circles of our 
drawing-rooms, and their splendid equipages rolling through the 
avenues of the metropolis ; but the unaccredited minister of the 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 257 

republic, if he visit our president or secretary of state at all, must 
do it incognito, lest the eye of Don Onis should be offended by so 
unseemly a sight ! I hope the gentleman from South Carolina, 
who is so capable of estimating the effect of moral causes, will see 
some use in recognising the independence of La Plata. I appeal 
to the powerful effect of moral causes, manifested in the case of the 
French revolution, when, by their influence, that nation swept from 
about her the armies of the combined powers, by which she was 
environed, and rose up the colossal power of Europe. There is 
an example of the effect of moral power. All the patriots ask, all 
they want at our hands, is, to be recognised as, what they have 
been for the last eight years, an independent power. 

" We have exchanged ministers with the Brazils. The one, 
however, is a kingdom, the other a republic ; and if any gentleman 
can assign any other better reason why a minister should be sent 
to one, and not to the other, of these powers, I shall be glad to 

hear it disclosed, for I have not been able myself to discover it. 

* * * # # ## # 

" But we are charged, on the present occasion, with treading on 
sacred ground. Let me suppose, what I do not believe to be the 
case, that the president has expressed an opinion one way and we 
another. At so early a period of our government, because a 
particular individual fills the presidential chair — an individual whom 
I highly respect, more perhaps than some of those who would 
be considered his exclusive friends — is the odious doctrine to 
be preached here, that the chief magistrate can do no wrong? Is 
the doctrine of passive obedience and non-resistance — are the 
principles of the Stuarts, to be revived in this free government? 
Is an opinion to be suppressed and scouted, because it is in oppo- 
sition to the opinion of the president? Sir, as long as I have a 
seat on this floor, I shall not hesitate to exert the independence 
which belongs to the representative character ; I shall not hesitate 
to express my opinions, coincident or not with those of the execu- 
tive. But I can show that this cry has been raised on the present 
occasion without reason. Suppose a case — that the president had 
sent a minister to Buenos Ayres, and this house had been called 
on to make an appropriation for the payment of his salary. I ask 
of gentlemen, whether in that case they would not have voted an 
appropriation ? And has not the house a right to deliberate on the 
propriety of doing so, as well before, as after a minister is sent? 
Will gentlemen please to point out the difference? I contend that 
we are the true friends of the executive ; and that the title does not 
belong to those who have taken it. We wish to extend his influ- 
ence, and give him patronage ; to give him means, as he has now 
the power, to send another minister abroad. But, apart from this 
view of the question, as regards the executive power, this house 



268 THE ADVOCATE OF 

lias the incontestable right to recognise a foreign nation in the exer- 
cise of its power, to regulate commerce with foreign nations. Sup- 
pose, for example, we pass an act to regulate trade between the 
United States and Buenos Ayres, the existence of the nation would 
be thereby recognised, as we could not regulate trade with a nation 
which does not exist." 

It is not pleasant to be obliged to record, that the measure pro- 
posed and advocated by Mr. Clay, by such arguments, at this ses- 
sion of Congress, in behalf of the provinces of Rio de La Plata, 
was rejected by a vote of 115 to 45. 

At the opening of the next session, the president (Monroe) in 
his annual message, after surveying the relations of the United 
States to Spain, and the struggles and condition of the Spanish 
provinces in South America, said: "There is good cause to be 
satisfied with the course heretofore pursued by the United States 
in regard to this contest, and to conclude that it is proper to adhere 
to it, especially in the present state of affairs." 

" The course heretofore pursued," was in substance the rejec- 
tion of the course proposed by Mr. Clay. As Mr. Monroe had 
made up his mind virtually to sustain in this message General 
Jackson's seizure of the Spanish posts, and to pass no censure 
upon him for other acts in the Seminole campaign, which were by 
many deemed improper — he himself having pronounced them so 
in a private correspondence, and having even entertained the idea 
of disapproving General Jackson's conduct in this very message, 
as seen in another part of this work — there was perhaps some 
apology, at least a species of political necessity, in abstaining from 
any expressions of sympathy, and from positively kind acts, 
toward the provinces of Spain, which would be unwelcome to the 
mother-country. 

It was not till February 9th of this short session, 1S1S-'19, 
while a bill to increase the salaries of certain officers of govern- 
ment, was pending, that Mr. Clay had an opportunity to allude to 
this unpleasant part of the president's message. He then said : — 

"It had been his settled intention to renew, pending this bill, the 
proposition which he had the honor of submitting at the las* 
session, having for its object the recognition of the independence 
of the united provinces of South America. He was restrained 
from executing that intention, by two considerations : one was his 
personal indisposition, but another and more important one, was, 
the small portion of the session yet remaining, to transact the 
public business. While he was up, he would say, that so far |j 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 259 

from his opinions, expressed on the former occasion, having under- 
gone any change, they had been strengthened and confirmed, by 
all the occurrences which had subsequently taken place. He had 
been anxious, if time had permitted, to examine what appeared to 
him very exceptionable reasons assigned for declining to recognise 
our sister republic, in a paper entitled to the most profound respect, 
the message of the president at the opening of Congress. He was 
desirous, also, of noticing the still more exceptionable grounds 
taken in a paper recently transmitted to the house, from the depart- 
ment of state. From that paper it appeared, that even a consul 
could not be received from the southern republic, because the 
grant of an exequator implied recognition ! We receive her flag, 
we admit her commerce, and yet refuse the consular protection 
which that flag and commerce necessarily drew with them ! But 
to submit his proposition would be to occasion, perhaps, a pro- 
tracted debate. And considering the few days yet left us, the pres- 
sing and urgent, though not more important business yet to be 
done, he should not hold himself excusable to the house and to 
the country, after having himself so materially contributed to the 
consumption of time in debate, if he were even the unintentional 
instrument of preventing the passage of what might be thought 
essential laws. He would like exceedingly to contrast the objec- 
tions urged against the reception of the Venezuelean minister, 
with the more forcible and stronger personal ones against the 
present Spanish minister. But deep as the interest which he 
heretofore had felt and still felt, in the success of that great strug- 
gle at the south, he must, for the reasons assigned, forbear to press 
any proposition upon the house, at present. Should it be neces- 
sary at another session, and should he have the honor of a seat on 
this floor then, he pledged himself to bring up the subject, unless 
adverse causes should render it highly inexpedient." 

When the Spanish treaty of 1819, to purchase Florida and 
give up Texas, was under consideration in 1820, Mr. Clay took 
an active part in opposing it, first, because Florida must inevitably 
come into the hands of the United States, and it was unnecessary to 
be in a hurry about it. " It must certainly come to us," said Mr. 
Clay. " The ripened fruit will not more surely fall." Next, be- 
cause territory could not be constitutionally ceded by treaty; 
and lastly, because it was giving too much for Florida — the con- 
sideration being variously estimated at from fifteen to twenty-five 
millions of dollars. In the debate on the resolutions offered by 
Mr. Clay, to prevent the consummation of the treaty, Mr. Clay 
said : — 

" There are two systems of policy, of which our government 



260 THE ADVOCATE OP 

cad had the choice. The first was, by appealing to the justice 
and affections of Spain, to employ all those persuasives which 
could arise out of our abstinence from any direct countenance to 
the cause of South America, and the observance of a strict neu- 
trality. The other was, by appealing to her justice also, and to 
her fears, to prevail upon her to redress the injuries of which we 
complain — her fears by a recognition of the independent govern- 
ments of South America, and leaving her in a state of uncertainty 
as to the further step we might take in respect to those govern- 
ments. The unratified treaty was the result of the first system. 
It could not be positively affirmed, what effect the other system 
would have produced ; but he verily believed that, while it ren- 
dered justice to those governments, and would have better com- 
ported with that magnanimous policy which ought to have charac- 
ized our own, it would have more successfully tended to an ami- 
cable and satisfactory arrangement of our differences with Spain. 
" The first system has so far failed. At the commencement of the 
session, the president recommended an enforcement of the provis- 
ions of the treaty. After three months' deliberation, the commit- 
tee of foreign affairs, not being able to concur with him, has made 
us a report, recommending the seizure of Florida in the nature of 
a reprisal. Now the president recommends our postponement of 
the subject until the next session. It had been his intention, when- 
ever the committee of foreign affairs should engage the house to 
act upon their bill, to offer, as a substitute for it, the system which 
he thought it became this country to adopt, of which the occupa- 
tion of Texas, as our own, would have been a part, and the recog- 
nition of the independent governments of South America another. 
If he did not now bring forward this system, it was because the 
committee proposed to withdraw their bill, and because he knew 
too much of the temper of the house and of the executive, to 
think that it was advisable to bring it forward. He hoped that 
some suitable opportunity might occur during the session, for con- 
sidering the propriety of recognising the independent governments 
of South America." 

Mr. Clay maintained, that the title of the United States, in that 
quarter, extended to the Rio del Norte on the west, and to the 
Perdido on the east. Texas was unencumbered, whereas Florida 
was shingled over with Spanish titles, to be made good. Rather 
than agree to this most unequal contract — which, as a treaty, he 
regarded as unconstitutional — Mr. Clay preferred to recognise the 
inde^^endence of Spanish America, first, because it was right; 
next, because it was fraternal and magnanimous ; and lastly, be- 
cause it was politic, and would tend to secure to the United States 
better terms with Spain. 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 261 

But President Monroe's annual message of December 7, 1819, 
communicating the Spanish treaty above noticed, and the mortify- 
ing fact of its not having been ratified by Spain, although made in 
conformity with the instructions of her minister at Washington, 
was characterized by a very different tone toward South America, 
from his previous messages and acts. The president seemed at 
last to have discovered the bad faith of Spain, and he plainly said : 
" By this proceeding Spain has done to the United States a new 
and very serious injury." He began also to see the South Amer- 
ican republics in a new hght, and spoke of their success and pros- 
pects in the most flattering terms. 

Under these auspicious circumstances, Mr. Clay, on the 3d of 
April, 1820, offered the following resolutions : — 

^^ Resolved, That it is expedient to provide by law a suitable 
outfit and salary for such minister or ministers as the president, by 
and with the advice and consent of the senate, may send to any of 
the governments of South America, which have established, and 
are maintaining, their independence of Spain. 

^'Resolved, That provision ought to be made for requesting the 
president of the United States to cause to be presented to the gen- 
eral, the most worthy and distinguished, in his opinion, in the ser- 
vice of any of the independent governments of South America, the 
sword which was given by the viceroy of Lima to Captain Biddle 
of the Ontario, during her late cruise in the Pacific, and which is 
now in the office of the department of state, with the expression 
of the wish of the Congress of the United States, that it may be 
employed in the support and preservation of the liberties and in- 
dependence of his country." 

When they came up for consideration, on the 10th of May, he 
withdrew the second, as, in the meantime a bill had been passed, 
to prevent the acceptance of presents from foreign governments by 
officers and agents of the United States, anticipating the rebuke 
which this resolution was intended to administer. 

It will be apparent, that Mr. Clay now occupied high ground in 
the advocacy of this great and philanthropic cause. Four years had 
rolled on, since he commenced these labors. He had fought and 
won, before the country, before the world — a pity to say, against 
his own government— one of the most brilliant battles for humanity, 
and for the rights of man, which history records. At last, in 1820, 
the field was well nigh cleared of domestic opposition. The per- 
fidy of Spain had brought the national executive to Mr. Clay's side, 
and it was said, that the president had started in a race with him. 



262 THE ADVOCATE OF 

to pluck the feather from his cap. But Mr. Monroe was a man 
of better feelings, than to be capable of envying such success, even 
though it had been apparently won over himself. 

If Mr. Monroe had been influenced by improper counsels, he 
was doubtless conscientious in the course he had pursued, and 
yielded at last with grace and dignity. Mr. Clay said : — 

" With regard to the form of his proposition, all he wanted was, 
to obtain an expression of the opinion of the house on this sub- 
ject ;" and whether a minister should be authorized to one or the 
other of these governments, or whether he should be of one grade 
or of another, he cared not. This republic, with the exception of 
the people of South America, constituted the sole depository of 
political and religious freedom ; and can it be possible, said he, 
that we can remain passive spectators of the struggle of those peo- 
ple to break the same chains which once bound us ? The opin- 
ions of the friends of freedom in Europe is, that our policy has 
been cold, heartless, and indifferent, toward the greatest cause 
which could possibly engage our affections and enlist our feeling!} 
in its behalf. 

" Mr. Clay concluded by saying that, whatever might be the 
decision of this house on this question, proposing shortly to go into 
retirement from public life, he should there have the consolation 
of knowing that he had used his best exertions in favor of a people 
inhabiting a territory calculated to contain as many souls as the 
whole of Christendom besides, whose happiness was at stake, and 
which it was in the power of this government to do so much tow- 
ard securing." 

This resolution was carried by a vote of 80 to 75, against the i 
wishes and influence of the administration, as was understood. 
The seed which had been sown by Mr. Clay for South American i 
emancipation took deep root in the public mind, and now began to i 
display the prospects of a fair and rich harvest. 

In the summer of 1821, after Mr. Clay had retired from Con- j 
grass, to labor at the oar of his profession as a lawyer, from the s 
necessities of his private affairs, to which he had been reduced by \ 
endorsing for others, his fellow-citizens at Lexington gave him a \ 
dinner, at which, of course, he, in return, gave them a speech. 
Alluding to his disappointment in not having accomplished more 
for South America, he said : — 

" It would have given him much satisfaction, if, prior to the 
close of his public career [it is singular that in 1821 he should 
have been speaking as if his public life were ended], sone sub- 
iects, in which his constituents had, with him, manifested a deep 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 263 

concern, could have had a completely successful issue. One of 
them was the recognition of the independent governments of South 
America. He was happy to be able to tell them, that the popular 
branch of the national legislature, in accordance with the senti- 
ments of the American people, had, at the last session of Congress, 
proclaimed to the world, the wish of this country for that recog- 
nition, and the great interest which is felt here for the success of 
ihe patriotic cause. And it might be reasonably hoped that the ex- 
ecutive branch of the government would not much longer delay 
to conform to the known sentiments of the whole Union. Among 
the motives which always appeared to him to recommend to this 
country to countenance, by all means short of actual war, that 
cause, ONE, and not the least considerable, was, that it would 
give additional tone, and hope, and confidence, to the friends of 
liberty throughout the world. It was evident, after the overthrow 
of Bonaparte, that the alliance, by which that event was unexpect- 
edly brought about, would push the principle of legitimacy — 
a softer and covert name for despotism — to the uttermost extent. 
Accordingly, the present generation had seen, with painful feelings, 
congress after congress assembling in Europe, to decide, without 
ceremony, upon the destiny of foreign and independent states. 
And if we, the greatest offender of all against the principle of le- 
gitimacy, had not been brought under their jurisdiction, and sub- 
jected to their parental care, we owed the exemption to our dis- 
tance from Europe, and to the known bravery of our countrymen. 
But who that has observed the giddiness and intoxication of power, 
can say, how long this exemption will continue ? It had seemed 
to him desirable, that a sort of counterpoise of the Holy Alliance 
should be formed in the two Americas, in favor of national inde- 
pendence and liberty, to operate by the force of example, and by 
moral influence, that here a rallying-point and an asylum should 
exist for freemen and for freedom." 

The action of " the popular branch of the national legislature," 
above alluded to and commended by Mr. Clay, consisted in the 
prompt passage of the following resolutions, which he himself 
offered on the 1 0th of February preceding : — 

" Resolved, That the house of representatives participate with 
the people of the United States, in the deep interest which they 
feel for the success of the Spanish provinces of South America 
which are struggling to establish their liberty and independence. 

" Resolved, That this house will give its constitutional support 
to the president of the United States, whenever he may deem it 
expedient to recognise the sovereignty and independence of any 
of said provinces." 

The first resolution was carried with only twelve dissenting 
voices : the vote on the second was 87 to 68. 

Vol. I. — lb 



264 THE ADVOCATE OF 

After the passage of the resolution of 1820, as before noticed, 
the triumph of Mr. Clay was signalized in the house of represen- 
tatives by adopting the unusual course of appointing a special com- 
mittee to wait on the president with a copy of the resolution, as a 
mode of advising him of the result of their action in the case. The 
usual mode was to transmit a certified copy of the journals by the 
hand of an officer of the house. But on this occasion, in consid- 
eration of the importance of the transaction in the cause of freedom, 
of the notoriety which the debates on the subject had obtained, of 
the growing interest of the public mind, which had been raised to 
an excitement, and, inasmuch as the whole transaction was avow- 
edly designed for moral effect — it could have no other — Mr. Clay 
thought proper to move for this committee, which was promptly 
granted, and himself, as mover, was of course placed at the head 
of it. 

It can not but be seen, that the position occupied for years by 
Mr. Clay, on the question of recognising the independence of the 
South American states, with all his fervor and earnestness, against 
Mr. Monroe and his administration, was a qvusi opposition, in 
which, and between the parties, there was, doubtless, more or less 
of feeling. The whole movement of Mr. Clay, in this great enter- 
prise, operated aggressively on the position of the administration. 
Although the president did not think best openly to oppose, it is 
quite probable he was not reluctant to put obstacles in Mr. Clay's 
path. He might possibly have thought, that it was his own appro- 
priate function to have charge of this business — to originate, as well 
as to manage foreign relations — and that Mr. Clay's zeal and activity 
bordered on interference. The whole aspect of the case, in its 
progress, would seem at least to indicate, that there was more in 
the bosoms of the parties concerned, than was made apparent to 
the public. 

Soon after the appointment of this special committee to wait on 
the president, and announce the result to which they had come, 
the house adjourned, and Mr. Nelson, the particular friend of Mr. 
Monroe, in this and in all things else, left the capitol in great ex- 
citement, declaring, as he went to his lodgings, that such an insult 
had never before been offered to any president. The committee, 
with Mr. Clay as their organ and chairman, waited upon the presi- 
dent, in the discharge of the duty which had been confided to 
them ; but, of course, Mr. Clay performed his part with the great- 
est delicacy and courtesy toward the executive, though, after all 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 265 

that had passed, it could hardly have been very desirable to that 
functionary. 

As a parliamentary achievement, the final success of this meas- 
ure was a signal triumph. But it is more especially worthy of 
notice in a moral point of view. The beginning, the progress, and 
the end, are alike worthy of regard. In the outset, there was noth- 
ing but the cause, in the distance — not a solitary movement, in all 
Christendom, in behalf of the South American patriots. For a 
leading statesman, in any country, to rise up, in such circumstan- 
ces, and say, let us take them by the hand, was a bold step. To 
move for and advocate the action of his own government, for a 
recognition of their political existence, as independent sovereign- 
ties, might seem a hopeless task. To persevere in the prosecution 
of this object, year after year, against opponents at home and op- 
ponents abroad, with all Europe and North America in a state of 
indifference, if not of hostility, argued a deep and permanent con- 
viction of the right of the cause. And to have pushed it at last to 
victory, causing it to be announced to all the world, that the first 
republic of modern times, was the first to extend her hand to a 
cluster of sister republics in the same hemisphere, that had broken 
the bands of despotism, and given promise of maintaining their 
rights, makes an epoch in history. 

The moral influence of this recognition answered all the purpo- 
ses which Mr. Clay predicted, and disappointed all the forebodings 
of the timid and irresolute. Spain could not make a case of it, for 
just complaint — much less for war. It was in vain that Lord 
Castlereagh held back, and Count Nesselrode sympathized with 
legitimacy. The passage of this resolution, as the first stage of Mr. 
Clay's triumph, made an impression throughout Europe — in all the 
world. Doubts vanished, and each of the parties interested in 
commerce, began to make its calculations and shape its policy 
for what was likely to come to pass — Great Britain not among 
the last. 

" Did any man doubt the feelings of the South toward us ?" 
said Mr. Clay, on this occasion. " In spite of our coldness toward 
them, of the rigor of our laws, and of the conduct of our officers, 
their hearts still turned toward us, as to their brethren ; and he had 
no doubt, if our government would take the lead in recognising 
them, they would become yet more anxious to imitate our institu- 
tions, and to secure to themselves and to their posterity the same 
freedom which we enjoy." 



266 THE ADVOCATE OF 

On the 8th of March, 1822, the president, by a special mes- 
eage to Congress, recommended the recognition of South Ameri- 
can independence ; and on the 28th of the same month, the meas- 
ure was carried in the house of representatives, with but one dis- 
senting- VOICE ! — a moral victory, after a struggle of years, 
achieved by a single arm — a victory, the equal of which is rarely 
to be found in the annals of political society — a victory of vast 
and inconceivable social results, in its checks on despotism, and 
for the furtherance of liberty. 

It was not unknown in South America, what the champion of 
their rights was doing for them in North America. His speeches 
in Congress were translated into Spanish, and read at the head of 
the armies of the southern republics while fighting for freedom. 
Doubtless, to his influence there, may in some measure be ascribed 
their success. It may even be, that success hinged upon it. It 
has been seen what that influence was at home. 

" I HAVE NO COMMISERATION FOR PRINCES. My SYMPA- 
THIES ARE RESERVED FOR THE GREAT MASS OF MANKIND." 

The following correspondence between Bolivar and Mr. 
Clay, will exhibit the character of the North American republican, 
in his frank rebuke of the ambitious designs of the South Amer- 
ican usurper : — 

" Bogota, November 21, 1827. 

'* Sir : I can not omit availing myself of the opportunity offered 
me by the departure of Colonel Watts, charge d'affaires of the 
United States, of taking the liberty of addressing your excellency. 
This desire has long been entertained by me, for the purpose of 
expressing my admiration of your excellency's brilliant talents 
and ardent love of liberty. All America, Colombia, and myself, 
owe your excellency our purest gratitude for the incomparable ser- 
vices you have rendered to us, by sustaining our course with a 
sublime enthusiasm. Accept, therefore, this sincere and cordial 
testimony, which I hasten to offer to your excellency, and to the 
government of the United States, who have so greatly contributed 
to the emancipation of your southern brethren. 

" I have the honor to offer to your excellency my distinguished 
consideration. Your excellency's obedient servant, 

" Bolivar." 

(reply.) 
" Washington, October 27, 1828. 
" Sir : It is very gratifying to me to be assured directly by 
your excellency, that the course which the government of the 
United States took, on this memorable occasion, and my humble 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 267 

efforts, have excited the gratitude, and commanded the approba- 
tion, of your excellency. I am persuaded that I do not misinter- 
pret the feelings of the people of the United States, as I certainly 
express my own, in saying, that the interest which was inspired 
in this country by the arduous struggles of South America, urose 
principally Jrom the hope, that, along with its independence, would 
be established free institutions, insuring all the blesshigs of civil lib- 
erty. To the accomjdishment of that object we still anxiously look. 
We are aware that great difficulties oppose it, among which not 
the least is that which arises out of the existence of a large mili- 
tary force, raised for the purpose of resisting the power of Spain. 
Standing armies, organized with the most patriotic intentions, are 
dangerous instruments. They devour the substance, debauch the 
morals, and too often destroy the liberties of the people. Nothing 
can be more perilous or unwise than to retain them after the ne- 
cessity has ceased which led to their formation, especially if their 
numbers are disproportionate to the revenues of the state. 

" But, notwithstanding all these difficulties, we had fondly cher- 
ished, and still indulge the hope, that South America would add a 
new triumph to the cause of human liberty ; and that Providence 
would bless her, as he had her northern sister, with the genius of 
some great and virtuous man, to conduct her securely through all 
her trials. We had even flattered ourselves, that we beheld that 
genius in your excellency. But I should be unworthy of the con- 
sideration with which your excellency honors me, and deviate from 
the frankness which I have ever endeavored to practise, if I did 
not on this occasion state, thai ambitious designs have been attrib- 
uted by your enemies to your excellency, which have created in my 
mind great solicitude. They have cited late events in Colombia 
as proofs of these designs. But, slow in the withdrawal of con- 
fidence which I have once given, I have been most unwilling to 
credit the unfavorable accounts which have from time to time 
reached me. I can not allow myself to believe, that your excel- 
lency will abandon the bright and glorious path which lies plainly 
Defore you, for the bloody road passing over the liberties of the 
numan race, on which the vulgar crowds of tyrants and military 
despots have so often trodden. I will not doubt, that your excel- 
lency will, in due time, render a satisfactory explanation to Colom- 
bia and the world, of the parts of your public conduct which have 
excited any distrust ; and that, preferring the true glory of our 
immortal Washington to the ignoble fame of the destroyers of 
liberty, you have formed the patriotic resolution of ultimately 
placing the freedom of Colombia upon a firm and sure foundation. 
That your efforts to that end may be crowned with complete suc- 
cess, I most fervently pray. 

" I request that your excellency will accept assurances of my 
sincere wishes for your happiness and prosperity. 

''H. Clay." 



268 



THE ADVOCATE OF 



These early, continued, and at last triumphant efforts in behalf 
of South America, are only 07ie direction of Mr. Clay's enlarged 
philanthropy and love of universal freedom. In the struggles of 
Greece, he displayed the same feeling. In 1824, Mr. Webster 
offered the following resolution in the house of representatives : — 

" Resolved, That provision ought to be made by law, for de- 
fraying the expense incident to the appointment of an agent or 
commissioner to Greece, whenever the president shall deem it 
expedient to make such appointment." 

It was supported by Mr. Clay, on the 20th of January, 1824, 
with the same zeal which he had before manifested for the oppressed 
provinces of Spanish America. The following are extracts from 
his remarks on this occasion : — 

" Mr. Chairman, is it not extraordinary, that for these two suc- 
cessive years, the president of the United States should have been 
freely indulged, not only without censure, but with universal ap- 
plause, 10 express the feelings which both the resolution and the 
amendment proclaim, and yet, if this house venture to unite with 
him, the most awful consequences are to ensue ? From Maine to 
Georgia, from the Atlantic ocean to the gulf of Mexico, the sen 
timent of approbation has blazed with the rapidity of electricity. 
Everywhere the interest in the Grecian cause is felt with the deep- 
est intensity, expressed in every form, and increases with every 
new day and passing hour. And are the representatives of the 
people alone to be insulated from the common moral atmosphere 
of the whole land? Shall we shut ourselves up in apathy, and 
separate ourselves from our country, from our constituents, from 
our chief magistrate, from our principles ? 

" The measure has been most unreasonably magnified. Gen- 
tlemen speak of the watchful jealousy of the Turk, and seem to 
think the slightest movement of this body will be matter of serious 
speculation at Constantinople. I believe that neither the sublime 
Porte, nor the European allies, attach any such exaggerated im- 
portance to the acts and deliberations of this body. The Turk 
will, in all probability, never hear of the names of the gentlemen 
who either espouse or oppose the resolution. It certainly is not 
without a value ; but that value is altogether moral. 

" There is reason to apprehend, that a tremendous storm is ready 
to burst upon our happy country — one which may call into action 
all our vigor, courage, and resources. Is it wise or prudent, in 
preparing to breast the storm, if it must come, to talk to this na- 
tion of its incompetency to repel European aggression — to lower 
its spirit, to weaken its moral energy, and to qualify it for easy 
conquest and base submission ? If there be any reality in the 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 269 

dangers which are supposed to encompass us, should we not ani- 
mate the people, and adjure them to believe, as I do, that our re- 
sources are ample ; and that we can bring into the field a million 
of freemen, ready to exhaust their last drop of blood, and to 
spend the last cent in the defence of the country, its liberty, and 
its institutions ? Sir, are these, if united, to be conquered by all 
Europe combined ? All the perils to which we can possibly be 
exposed, are much less in reality, than the imagination is disposed 
to paint them. And they are best averted by an habitual contem- 
plation of them, by reducing them to their true dimensions. If 
combined Europe is to precipitate itself upon us, we can not too 
soon begin to invigorate our strength, to teach our heads to think, 
our hearts to conceive, and our arms to execute the high and no- 
ble deeds which belong to the character and glory of our country. 
The experience of the world instructs us, that conquests are al- 
ready achieved, which are boldly and firmly resolved on ; and 
that men only become slaves who have ceased to resolve to be 
free. If we wish to cover ourselves with the best of all armor, 
let us not discourage our people, let us stimulate their ardor, let 
us sustain their resolution, let us proclaim to them that we feel as 
they feel, and that, with them, we are determined to live or die 
like freemen. 

" Surely, sir, we need no long or learned lectures about the 
nature of government, and the influence of property or ranks on 
society. We may content ourselves with studying the true char- 
acter of our own people, and with knowing that the interests are 
confided to us of a nation capable of doing and suffering all 
things for its liberty. Such a nation, if its rulers be faithful, must 
be invincible. I well remember an observation made to me by 
the most illustrious female* of the age, if not of her sex. ' All 
history showed,' she said, ' that a nation was never conquered.' 
No, sir, no united nation, that resolves to be free, can be conquer- 
ed. And has it come to this ? Are we so humbled, so low, so 
debased, that we dare not express our sympathy for suffering 
Greece ? that we dare not articulate our detestation of the brutal 
excesses of which she has been the bleeding victim, lest we might 
offend some one or more of their imperial and royal majesties ? 
If gentleman are afraid to act rashly on such a subject, suppose, 
Mr. Chairman, that we unite in an humble petition, addressed to 
their majesties, beseeching them, that of their gracious condescen 
sion, they would allow us to express our feelings and our sympa 
thies. How shall it run ? ' We, the representatives of the free 
people of the United States of America, humbly approach the 
thrones of your imperial and royal majesties, and supplicate that, 
of your imperial and royal clemency — ' I can not go through the 
disgusting recital ; my lips have not yet learned to pronounce the 
• Madame de Stael. 



270 THE ADVOCATE OF 

sycophantic language of a degraded slave ! Are we so mean, so 
base, so despicable, that we may not attempt to express our hor- 
ror, utter our indignation, at the most brutal and atrocious war 
that ever stained earth or shocked high Heaven ? at the ferocious 
deeds of a savage and infuriated soldiery, stimulated and urged 
on by the clergy of a fanatical and inimical religion, and rioting 
in all the excesses of blood and butchery, at the mere details of 
which the heart sickens and recoils ? 

" If the great body of Christendom can look on calmly and 
coolly, while all this is perpetrated on a Christian people, in its own 
immediate vicinity, in its very presence, let us at least evince, that 
one of its remote extremities is susceptible of sensibility to Christian 
wrongs, and capable of sympathy for Christian sufferings; that in 
this remote quarter of the world, there are hearts not yet closed 
against compassion for human woes, that can pour out their indig- 
nant feehngs at the oppression of a people endeared to us by every 
ancient recollection, and every modern tie. Sir, attempts have 
been made to alarm the committee, by the dangers to our com- 
merce in the Mediterranean, and a wretched invoice of figs and 
opium has been spread before us to repress our sensibiUties and to 
eradicate our humanity. Ah ! sir, ' what shall it profit a man if he 
gain the whole world and lose his own soul?' or what shall it avail 
a nation to save the whole of a miserable trade, and lose its 

liberties ? 

#***♦*** 

" Sir, it is not for Greece alone that I desire to see this measure 
adopted. It will give to her but little support, and that purely of 
a moral kind. It is principally for America, for the credit and 
character of our common country, for our own unsullied name, 
that I hope to see it pass. Mr. Chairman, what appearance on the 
page of history would a record like this exhibit? — 'In the month 
of January, in the year of our Lord and Savior, 1824, while all 
European Christendom beheld, with cold and unfeeling indiffer- 
ence, the unexampled wrongs and inexpressible misery of Christian 
Greece, a proposition was made in the Congress of the United 
States, almost the sole, the last, the greatest depository of human 
hope and human freedom, the representatives of a gallant nation, 
containing a million of freemen ready to fly to arms, while the 
people of that nation were spontaneously expressing its deep-toned 
feeling, and the whole continent, by one simultaneous emotion, 
was rising, and solemnly and anxiously suppHcating and invoking 
high Heaven to spare and succor Greece, and to invigorate her 
arms in her glorious cause, while temples and senate-houses were 
alike resounding with one burst of generous and holy sympathy ; 
in the year of our Lord and Savior — that Savior of Greece and 
of us — a proposition was offered in the American Congress to send 
a messenger to Greece, to inquire into her state and condition, 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 271 

with a kind expression of our good-wishes and our synipathie^j — 
and it was rejected!' Go home, if you can; go home, if you 
dare, to your constituents, and tell them that you voted it down ; 
meet, if you can, the appalling countenances of those who sent 
you here, and tell them that you shrank from the declaration of 
your own sentiments ; that you can not tell how, but that some 
unknown dread, some indescribable apprehension, some indefinable 
danger, drove you from your purpose ; that the spectres of cime- 
ters, and crowns, and crescents, gleamed before you and alarmed 
you ; and that you suppressed all the noble feelings prompted by 
religion, by liberty, by national independence, and by humanity ! 
I can not bring myself to believe, that such will be the feeling of a 
majority of the committee. But, for myself, though every friend 
of the cause should desert it, and I be left to stand alone with the 
gentleman from Massachusetts, I will give to his resolution the 
poor sanction of my unqualified approbation." 

Though this resolution failed, it is pleasant to be able to record 
the fact, that the United States were the first to recognise the inde- 
pendence of Greece, and that it was consummated by Mr. Clay as 
secretary of state, under the administration of Mr. J. Q. Adams. 

The efforts of Mr. Clay as disclosed in this chapter, lay open 
a volume of history, which, in the rapid and absorbing career of 
subsequent events, has for many years slept in repose ; but which 
is in fact one of the most brilliant demonstrations in the character 
of this American statesman. His position at this epoch of the 
occidental world, is defined in the letter of Mr. Rush. It was 
Henry Clay that stepped in between the struggling milHons of 
South America and their European oppressors, and spoke to them 
words of encouragement. It was Henry Clay that threw his 
shield over that wide field of suffering humanity, and gave it 
breathing time, and hope, and courage. It was Henry Clay 
that " looked at Spain and the Indies, and called a new world into 
existence,'''' and not Mr. Canning. 

It has already been remarked, in substance, that a disappoint- 
ment which, to a considerable extent, may have been fdt, in hav- 
ing witnessed the unsettled state, and frequent revolutions, of the 
South American republics, since their severance from the parent 
state, does not detract at all from the virtue of those who sympa- 
thized with them in their first efforts for emancipation, nor from 
the merit of that moral aid which they derived from the gallant 
labors of Mr. Clay in their behalf. But there are even more sub- 
stantial and more gratifying reflections arising from that quarter, 



272 THE ADVOCATE OF 

than the consideration of this effective sympathy which does so 
much honor to human nature. 

In the first place, it is obvious, that all the agitations, revolutions, 
and calamitous vicissitudes, through which the South American 
states have passed, since they achieved their independence, are 
greatly less evils than would have resulted from their resubjuga- 
tion, if the treatment they had previously received, may be taken 
as a criterion of that which would have been dealt out to them, in 
the event of their having been reconquered. They had been sealed 
up under a religioso-political despotism, unexampled for its sever- 
ity in the history of the world. It was the deliberate policy of 
Spain, for fear that colonies so remote might some time assert their 
just rights, to imprison that immense portion of the human mind 
in the bands of ignorance and superstition ; to cut them off from 
all intercourse with the rest of the world, and with each other ; to 
send governors to rule with the bayonet, and priests to subdue with 
the terrors of the inquisition ; to keep the people in perpetual and 
hopeless servitude to the throne and to the church ; to draw from 
them all the fruits of their labor, and all the wealth of their mines ; 
to forbid all pursuits, and all products of labor, that would not en- 
rich the domestic empire ; and to maintain a subjection of mind 
and body, that would never have a spirit to complain — -much less 
courage to rebel. If any state of things could be worse than such 
a condition of twenty millions of the human family, let a freeman 
rise, and tell what it is. But a resubjugation would have made 
that condition as much worse as imagination can conceive. The 
atrocities committed, in the partial advantages gained by the royal 
arms during the contest, on men, women, and children, which 
none but the most diabolical feelings could suggest or authorize, 
were but foretastes of the rigor and inhumanity destined for al. 
those people, in case of their failure of final success. 

Unless it be maintained, that it was right and best, that South 
America should have remained for ever under Spain, with such 
designs as history discloses, then clearly, the only better time to 
assert their rights, must have been an earlier period, instead of a 
later ; for they could never afterward have been so well prepared. 
Every reasoning man, therefore, will naturally come to the conclu- 
sion, that such a people must necessarily pass through a protracted 
and painful school of experience, in their attempts to establish a 
free government and free institutions, before they will be likely to 
accomplish all that is most desirable. 



UNIVERSAL FREEDOM. 273 

One great thing has been obtained : they have cut loose from 
the despotisms of the old world — in all probability for ever. It 
would require much profound thought to appreciate all the advan- 
tages of such a step. But they are many and great. They have 
taken rank in the American family of nations, with somewhat, at 
least, of the American spirit, as distinctive from that of Europe. 
Their model of political society has ever been the North American 
republic. It may be ages before they will gain what they desire, 
and what they set out for. But they are free — comparatively so. 
They have chances, aspirations, hopes, energies, resources, capa- 
bilities. Every succeeding generation increases in knowledge, and 
it may be hoped in virtue. If an oppressor rises to-day, he is put 
down to-morrow. They are increasing in numbers, wealth, and 
power ; opening intercourse with the wide world ; and every change 
through which they pass, though it may seem disastrous for the 
time being, operates as a fermentation to purify the masses, and as 
a challenge to call better spirits into the field. If all has not been 
realized that was hoped for, it is more because those expectations 
were unreasonable, than that the freedom of states and the rights 
of man have gained nothing. They have gained much, and a 
foundation is laid for future and boundless acquisitions. 

It was early, indeed, but not without a forecast of coming events 
— not without a profound consideration of the mighty theme — that 
Mr. Clay, in the former period of his life, took such ripe views of 
the destiny of the South American states. He saw that it was best 
that their political connexion with Europe should be severed, and 
he was right. He saw that it was natural they should copy after 
the institutions of the north ; and they have aimed to do so. He 
saw, that the social, political, and commercial connexions between 
North and South America, were destined to be important to all 
parties; and they have proved so, and are becoming more and more 
so. The instructions which he prepared for the representatives 
from the United States to the Panama congress, noticed in a for- 
mer chapter, embodied a complete system of policy for all the 
American states, north and south, itself truly American, as opposed 
to those European dogmas, which are adverse to American inter- 
ests, and to American rights. Though the doctrines of that letter 
are little known, they can not fail to attract the attention of future 
statesmen, as well in South America as in North, and it need not 
be surprising, if they should yet be adopted as a common creed 
among the states of this western hemisphere. 



274: THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 



CHAPTER XII. 

THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. MR. CLAY ON THE SEMI- 
NOLE CAMPAIGN. 

The special interest of this speech arises from the fact of its 
having been the probable cause of important and momentous 
events in the history of the United States — a cause which will 
readily occur to those who are acquainted with the temper — as who 
is not? — of the eminent individual whose conduct in that cam 
paign is made a subject of animadversion in this parliamentary 
effort. What other causes might have arisen in the absence of 
this, to prompt a vindictive and implacable mind to a course of 
conduct like to that which apparently grew out of this, it is impos- 
sible to say; but few will doubt that this must have had its 
influence. 

On the 12th of January, 1819, Mr. Nelson, of Virginia, from 
the committee on military affairs in the house of representatives, 
brought in a report to that body, based upon the documents which 
had been laid before them respecting the events of the campaign 
of 1818, against the Indians in Florida, under the conduct of 
Major-General Andrew Jackson, and submitted the following 
resolution : — 

"■Resolved, That the house of representatives of the United 
States, disapproves the proceedings in the trial and execution of 
Alexander Arbuthnot and Robert C. Ambrister." 

The seizure and occupation of the Spanish posts by General 
Jackson, under the circumstances of the case, were also disap- 
proved in the majority report of the committee, and defended by 
Mr. Johnson, of Kentucky, in a report from a minority, which 
also vindicated the trial and execution of Arbuthnot and Ambris- 
ter. The report of the majority says: "Your committee must 
here, in justice to their own feelings, express their extreme regret, 
that it has become their duty to disapprove the conduct of one, 
who has, on a former occasion, so eminently contributed to the 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 275 

honor and defence of the nation, as has Major-General Jackson ; 
but the more elevated the station, the more exahed the character 
of the individual, the more necessary is it, by a reasonable, yet 
temperate expression of public opinion, through the constitutional 
organs, to prevent the recurrence of incidents at variance with the 
principles of our government and laws." 

As the administration was implicated in these transactions, in 
having felt obliged, as the least of two evils, though with great re- 
luctance, to sustain General Jackson, all its influence in the house 
was of course brought to bear against the report of the committee. 
The executive was placed in an embarrassing position, in being 
obhged to defend what it really disapproved. 

The following are extracts from President Monroe's private cor- 
respondence with General Jackson on this subject, since pub- 
lished : — 

"Washington, July 19, 1818. 

" Your attack of the Spanish posts, and occupancy of them, par- 
ticularly Pensacola, being an occurrence of the most delicate and 
interesting nature, &c. * * * In calling you into active service 
against the Seminoles, and communicating to you the orders which 
had been given just before to General Gaines, the views and inten- 
tions of the government were fully disclosed in respect to the op- 
erations in Florida. In transcending the limit prescribed by those 
orders, you acted on your own responsibility." 

In another letter, in answer to a private one from General Jack- 
son, replying to the above of July 19th, dated Washington, Octo- 
ber 20th, 1818, Mr. Monroe says: — 

"I was sorry to find you understood your instructions relative 
to operations in Florida, different from what we intended. I was 
satisfied, however, that you had good reason for your conduct, and 
have acted in all things on that principle." 

In a letter of President Monroe, while absent from the seat of 
government, to Mr. Calhoun, secretary of war, dated Highland, 
Sept. 9, 1818, he says: — 

"Our view of his [General Jackson's] powers, is decidedly 
different from his, on which, too, we acted without entertaining a 
suspicion that he would misunderstand it. I am inclined to think 
I had better answer his letter immediately. [The answer is that 
of October 20th, as above.] He may expect that his conception 
of his orders should appear by document in the department ; and 
it seems to be proper, that the sense in which they were given, and 
understood by the department, after what has passed, should be re- 
corded there. A communication between you and him, on this head 



276 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

and in this stage, seems to be the more necessary, /row the jyresump 
tion, that it may be my duty to state to Co?igrcss, that he transcended 
his orders, on his own respo7isihility ; or at least, to state the sense 
in which they were understood by us. At present, nothing to this 
effect exists in your correspondence with him. It is in mine only, 
which is private." 

The Hon. Wm. H. Crawford, who was a member of Mr. Mon- 
roe's cabinet at the time, says in a letter to Mr. Forsyth, dated at 
Woodlawn, April 30, 1830;— 

"Mr. Calhoun's proposition in the cabinet, was, that General 
Jackson should be punished in some form, or reprimanded in 
some form." 

From these incidental items of history, it will be seen, first, that 
General Jackson had transcended his orders, and acted on his own 
responsibility ; next, that President Monroe and his cabinet were 
much embarrassed in their management of foreign relations with 
Spain, on that account; thirdly, that President Monroe, in a pri- 
vate correspondence, had plainly announced to General Jackson 
the position he occupied in this matter ; fourthly, that when Mr. 
Monroe wrote to Mr. Calhoun, September 19th, as above, he 
seriously entertained the feeling, that it might be his duty to repre- 
sent the case, as it was, to Congress ; but fifthly, it appears from 
the result, that the administration, on the whole, concluded to as- 
sume the responsibility, and make the best of it. 

But there have been some more recent, though as yet partial, 
disclosures, on this subject, which are worthy of note. An at- 
tempt was made in the Washington Globe, in 1832 — of course 
under the eye and sanction of General Jackson, as that paper was 
his organ — to fasten the responsibiHty of all General Jackson's 
transactions in Florida on Mr. Monroe, by claiming, that the gen- 
eral acted under Mr. Monroe's secret orders. If such were the 
fact, Mr. Monroe's truthfulness, not less than his consistency, is at 
stake, and an everlasting aspersion would attach itself to his hith- 
erto spotless fame. As the natural, and it is presumed, constituted 
guardian of his father-in-law's reputation, S. L. Gouverneur, Esq., 
addressed a letter on this occasion to Mr. Blair, editor of the 
Globe, of which the following are extracts: — 

"I can readily suppose, that transcendant obligations of feeling 
and duly imposed upon me, under circumstances of the most 
sacred nature, are yet unknown to you. 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 277 

*'I have followed the progress of this discussion to a point, 
where I had earnestly hoped it would never reach— to a point 
where it becomes imperative upon the representatives of Mr. Mon- 
roe, boldly to challenge the evidence on which insinuations against 
his purity and honor are made and repeated, or to suffer, without 
an effort to arrest it, that his character be shaded by imputations of 
the most decided duplicity, and the most contemptible evasions. 
******** 

"You distinctly charge, that in conducting the Seminole war, 
General Jackson was in fact acting under the secret orders of the 
government. It is impossible not to observe, that although not 
personally named, it must be the undoubted inference, that he was 
in possession of secret orders from Mr. Monroe, directly at 
variance with those which were made known to the public ; that 
while Mr. Monroe disavowed before the world his [General Jack 
son's] conduct in Florida, as transcending his instructions, but the 
merits of which he fully acknowledged, the motives of which he 
never called in question, and which for good and sufficient reasons, 
he chose to sustain — he had privately encouraged and promoted 
the very acts which he subsequently disapproved ; that he suffered 
General Jackson to bear the brunt of an investigation of the most 
painful character, for an alleged high offence against the constitu- 
tion and laws, when he himself had made him his own instrument 
for a palpable violation of both, and withheld from him the means 
of a triumphant defence. It is a solemn charge and ought to be 
gravely considered. If it is not your intention to make it clear, 
the matter from which it inevitably springs, deserves your correc- 
tion. If, on the contrary, you intend and think you can sustain it, 

I CHALLENGE THE INVESTIGATION. 

* ******* 

^^ Being myself possessed of many valtcable documents, fully illus' 
trative of the facts in question, I shall feel it incumbent upon me, 
upon a proper intimation, by a frank exposition of their contents, 
to contribute to a fair distribution of justice to all." 

This letter was signed, Samuel L. Gouverneur, New York, June 
15, 1832, and was in answer to an article in the Globe, of the 9th 
of the same month. Mr. Blair replied in a letter over his own 
signature, dated Washington, June 20, 1832, of which the follow- 
ing is an extract: — 

" But there is another circumstance much more decisive on this 
point. The individual who communicated to General Jackson 
Mr. Monroe's purpose as to the mode of carrying into effect his 
public orders, invited by letter, as I have understood, the attention 
of the latter [Mr. Monroe] to the fact alluded to in the article of 
the Globe, and presented to him all the particulars of the transa*. 



\ 



278 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

tton, with an inquiry as to his recollection on the subject. With 
this gentleman, then, if there were any certainty of opinion, in re- 
gard to the fact stated by him, the issue should have been made, 
and not with me, merely repeating what this individual, cognizant 
of all the circumstances, had asserted, without contradiction.^^ 

Mr. Blair says : " This letter closes our correspondence." Mr. 
Gouverneur, in a reply, of July 3, says • •* I can not permit it. . . 
You may strike, but you must hear. ... I requested you to state, 
whether it was your intention, that it should be inferred from the 
words I had noted, that, in conducting the Seminole war, General 
Jackson was in possession of sec7-et orders from Mr. Monroe, at 
variance with those which had issued from the department of war, 

and were made known to the public ? 

• #•*••• 

" In speaking of instructiojis, you will of course understand me 
distinctly as referring to those which had issued from the war de- 
partment. I say there were none other. Do you not observe, then, 
the difficulty into which you would plunge? In contending that 
he was in fact acting under secret orders, do you not imply the 
admission that he transcended his public instructions ? If not, 
why are they brought to their aid ? 

" But you say there is another circumstance much more de- 
cisive, and refer me to a certain letter, written by a certain indi- 
vidual, calling the attention of Mr. Monroe to the fact alluded to — 
and from the pointed manner in which you mark the fact [by 
underscoring it] which you assume to be true — that it is ' without 
contradictio7i^ — you seem to infer that, because it is without con- 
tradiction, it may be made to sustain your position. Retaining the 
strong desire, to which I have adverted, not to refer, unless it be- 
comes my duty so to do, to anything private, I still owe to you a 
candid reply to the remark which you have made ; There is no 
shape., in which the fact alluded to, has ever reached the eye, or ear, 
of Mr. Monroe, that it has not been contradicted. It is as his 
representative, and upon his authority, that I contradict it; and 
that you may at least do some justice to my motives and views, 1 
do not hesitate to add, it is under circumstances of a sacred duty, 
t^at 1 do contradict it. I have every personal motive to be silent. 
I am bound to speak." 

The New York Courier and Enquirer, of Oct. 1, 1832, in which 
this correspondence appears, says : — 

" Issue has been fearlessly joined upon this fearful question, 
which on one side involves the official acts of Mr. Monroe, and 
lis memory as an honorable man — and on the other, the reputa- 
tton and character of Andrew Jackson." 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 279 

There are two points in ttiis correspondence, connected with 
facts yet unrevealed, which are of importance. Mr. Blair speaks 
of a certain " individual," with a distinct intimation, that he was 
the agent of " secret orders" between Mr. Monroe and General 
Jackson, and that this individual *' invited by letter the atten- 
tion of Mr. Monroe to the fact alluded to in the article of the 
Globe," &c., concluding with another intimation, that this call of 
Mr. Monroe's attention to the said fact, remains " without con- 
tradiction." The second point is, Mr. Gouverneur's averment, 
in the most solemn form, that it does not remain without contra- 
diction. This intimation of Mr. Gouverneur of the existence of 
evidence on this point, which he could not volunteer, and which 
he holds in reserve for the vindication of Mr. Monroe, arrested the 
movement, and there it stands. 

The matters half disclosed in this correspondence, but yet in 
fact unrevealed, involve denominations of offence, which belong to 
the criminal code. It will be for those concerned to show what 
fhey are, on a fit occasion. 

The fact was, that the Hon. John Q. Adams was the only man 
in Mr. Monroe's cabinet, who vindicated General Jackson, as to 
his Seminole operations, in the particulars in which he was alleged 
to have " transcended his orders." His principle was, that hav- 
ing ordered the army over the line, in pursuit of the enemy, the 
government was responsible to Spain for all the American general 
did in that field, in the use of his best discretion, and that, to jus- 
tify the government toward Spain, it was necessary to sustain 
General Jackson i?i toto. But in the cabinet meetings on this 
subject, from the 13th to the 21st of July, 1818, inclusive of these 
dates — those meetings having been seven in all — Mr. Adams stood 
ALONE against the president and the other members, in support of 
General Jackson. The argument was chiefly carried on between 
Mr. Adams and the secretary of war, Mr. Calhoun, the rest assent- 
ing to Mr. Calhoun's reasonings. The cabinet were unanimous, 
with the exception of Mr. Adams. Mr. Calhoun thought, tha 
General Jackson wanted war — that he had actually committed war 
against Spain. Mr. Monroe proposed to Mr. Adams to write an 
article for the National Intelligencer, declaratory of his (the presi- 
dent's) views on this subject. Mr. Adams declined, on the ground, 
that it was not his own position ; and Mr. Wirt prepared the arti- 
cle, which, after having been read to the cabinet, was published in 

Vol. L— 17 



280 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS- 

the National Intelligencer, July 28, 1818, of which the following 
are extracts : — 

" The president of the United States has, we understand, de- 
cided, that Pensacola, and the other Spanish posts, which have 
been taken by General Jackson, in the Floridas, shall be restored 
to the Spanish authority." * * * 

In speaking of the fourth order to enter the Floridas, after the 
Indian massacre, in pursuit of the enemy, it is added : " By the 
same order he [the general] was expressly commanded, if the In- 
dians should take refuge under a Spanish fort, not to attack them 
in that situation, but to report the case to the department of war. 
Such has been the delicacy observed by the United States toward 
Spain ; and no subsequent order, it is understood, has been issued, 
to enlarge the authority of the American general. 

" In attacking the posts of St. Marks and Pensacola, with the 
fort of Barrancas, General Jackson, it is understood, acted on 
facts, which were, for the first time, brought to his knowledge, on 
the immediate theatre of war — facts, which, in his estimation, im- 
plicated the Spanish authorities in that quarter, as the instigators 
and auxiliaries of the war ; and he took those measures on his own 
responsibility merely. That his operations proceeded from motives 
of the purest patriotism, and from his conviction, that, in seizing 
and holding those posts, he was justified by the necessity of the 
case, and was advancing the best interests of the country, the char- 
acter of General Jackson forbids a doubt. Of the important facts 
alleged by him, satisfactory proof, it is understood, has been already 
furnished to the president, and proof of the other facts is confi- 
dently expected." 

It will be found, that this document, occupying two columns of 
the paper, is an able and cautious exposition of the ground intended 
to be occupied by the president toward Spain, as well as toward 
General Jackson. He was apparently convinced, by the argument 
of Mr. Adams, that the general must be sustained, for public and 
national purposes toward Spain, though it was manifestly against 
his own personal feelings on the subject. Mr. Monroe's subse- 
quent annual message corresponded with this paper published in 
July, as may be supposed, for the eye of the Spanish minister, and 
the public. 

The position taken by General Jackson, on the question of 
annexing Texas, in 1844, was supposed to reflect a disapprobation 
of Mr. Monroe's treaty of cession in 1819, in consequence of 
which, his son-in-law, Mr. Gouverneur, published an article in the 
National Intelligencer, December 24, 1844, of which the follow- 
ing is a part : — 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 281 

" Its [the treaty's] provisions were the subjects of friendly con- 
sultation with Jefferson and Madison, names identified with no 
concession unworthy of their country ; and the policy dictated, 
especially as to boundaries, has the written approbation of Jackson, 
well versed in the localities of a territory to which they refer, then 
lately the scene of military services distinguished by high personal 
responsibihty, which gave him new claims to the grateful recollec- 
tions of his country." 

When Mr. Gouverneur was called on for this '* written appro- 
bation," he produced the following letter from Andrew Jackson to 
James Monroe : — 

" Hermitage (near Nashville), June 20, 1820. 

" Dear Sir : I returned from my tour to the south and south- 
east on the evening of the 18th instant, when I received your very 
friendly and interesting letter of the 23d of May last, which I have 
read with interest and attention. On its perusal and consideration 
I have determined to remain in service until the situation of Europe 
fully develops itself, and our affairs with Spain are brought to a 
final close. 

" Although retirement has been and still is the first object of my 
wishes, yet so long as it is believed that my military service may 
conduce to the benefit of my country in any way, my exertions 
belong to her. I have hitherto made, and it is still my duty as a 
patriot to make, my private interest and views subservient to my 
country's good. I have, therefore, upon due consideration and 
reflection on the subject matter of your interesting letter, resolved 
not to retire from service so long as my continuing may promote 
the welfare, safety, and happiness of our country. I am well 
aware, as soon as you believe the situation of our affairs will per- 
mit of my retiring without injury to our country, you will notify 
me thereof, and permit me to retire. Until then, my private 
wishes and feelings must bend to what it may be conceived will 
promote the public good. 

" The view you have taken of the conduct pursued by our gov- 
ernment relative to South America, in my opinion, has been both 
just and proper, and will be approved by nine tenths of the nation. 
It is true, it has been attempted to be wielded by certain dema- 
gogues to the injury of the administration, but, like all other base 
attempts, has recoiled on its authors ; and I am clearly of your 
opinion that, for the present, we ought to he content with the Flori- 
das — fortify them, concentrate our population, confine our frontier 
to proper limits^ until our country, to those limits, is filled with a 
dense population. It is the denseness of our population that gives 
strength and security to our frontier. With the Floridas in our 
possession, our fortifications completed, Orleans, the great empo 



282 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS 

rium of the west, is secure. The Floridas in possession of a for- 
eign power, you can be invaded, your fortifications turned, the 
Mississippi reached, and the lower country reduced. From Texas, 
an invading enemy will never attempt such an enterprise ; if he 
does, notwithstanding all that has been said and asserted on the 
jloor of Congress on this subject, I will vouch that the invader will 
pay for his temerity. 

" Present Mrs. Jackson and myself to Mrs. Monroe and your 
daughters and Mr. Gouverneur affectionately, and receive for 
yourself our best wishes for your happiness through this life, and 
that of your amiable family; and believe me to be, with high 
respect and esteem, your most obedient servant, 

" Andrew Jackson. 

"James Monroe, President U. /S." 

So far as the questions arising out of the Seminole campaign 
regarded Spain, inasmuch as Mr. Monroe had promptly ordered 
the surrender of the Spanish posts, taken by General Jackson, to 
the Spanish authorities. Congress, and Mr. Clay, were disposed to 
sustain the administration. But the execution of two Indian 
chiefs, who had been decoyed and taken by a false flag, and of 
Arbuthnot and Ambrister, in connexion with the unauthorized 
taking of the Spanish posts, were regarded by numerous members 
of both houses of Congress, as worthy of reprehension. An ani- 
mated debate on the resolution reported by the committee on mili- 
tary affairs, above copied, was maintained about twenty days in 
committee of the whole, in the house of representatives, in which 
thirty-one members participated. Mr. Clay delivered two speeches, 
only one of which, the first, was reported. He opened this ad- 
dress, January 17, 1819, as follows : — 

"Mr. Chairman: In rising to address you, sir, on the very 
interesting subject which now engages the attention of Congress, 
I must be allowed to say, that all inferences drawn from the course 
which it will be my painful duty to take in this discussion, of un- 
friendUness either to the chief magistrate of the country, or to the 
illustrious military chieftain whose operations are under investiga- 
tion, will be wholly unfounded. Toward that distinguished cap- 
tain, who shed so much glory on our country, whose renown con- 
stitutes so great a portion of its moral property, I never had, I 
never can have, any other feelings than those of the most pro- 
found respect, and of the utmost kindness. With him my ac- 
quaintance is very Umited ; but, so far as it has extended, it has 
been of the most amicable kind. I know the motives which have 
been, and which will again be, attributed to me, in regard to the 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 283 

Other exalted personage alluded to. They have been and will be 
unfounded. I have no interest, other than that of seeing the con- 
cerns of my country well and happily administered. It is infin- 
itely more gratifying to behold the prosperity of my country ad- 
vancing by the wisdom of the measures adopted to promote it, 
than it would be to expose the errors which may be committed, 
if there be any, in the conduct of its affairs. Little as has been 
my experience in public life, it has been sufficient to teach me that 
the most humble station is surrounded by difficulties and embar- 
rassments. Rather than throw obstructions in the way of the 
president, I would precede him, and pick out those, if I could, 
which might jostle him in his progress ; I would sympathize with 
him in his embarrassments, and commiserate with him in his mis- 
fortunes. It is true that it has been my mortification to differ 
from that gentleman on several occasions. I may be again reluc- 
tantly compelled to differ from him ; but I will, with the utmost 
sincerity, assure the committee, that I have formed no resolution, 
come under no engagements, and that I never will form any reso- 
lution, or contract any engagements, for systematic opposition to 
his administration, or to that of any other chief magistrate. 

" I beg leave further to premise, that the subject under consid- 
eration presents two distinct aspects, susceptible, in my judgment, 
of the most clear and precise discrimination. The one I will call 
its foreign, the other its domestic aspect. In regard to the first, I 
will say, that I approve entirely of the conduct of our govern- 
ment, and that Spain has no cause of complaint. Having viola- 
ted an important stipulation of the treaty of 1795, that power has 
justly subjected herself to all the consequences which ensued 
upon the entry into her dominions, and it belongs not to her to 
complain of those measures which resulted from her breach of 
contract ; still less has she a right to examine into the considerations 
connected with the domestic aspect of the subject. 

" What are the propositions before the committee ? The first 
in order, is that reported by the military committee, which asserts 
the disapprobation of this house, of the proceedings in the trial 
and execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister. The second, being 
the first contained in the proposed amendment, is the consequence 
of that disapprobation, and contemplates the passage of a law to 
prohibit the execution hereafter of any captive, taken by the army, 
without the approbation of the president. The third proposition 
is, that this house disapproves of the forcible seizure of the Span- 
ish posts, as contrary to orders, and in violation of the constitu- 
tion. The fourth proposition, as the result of the last, is, that a 
law shall pass to prohibit the march of the army of the United 
States, or any corps of it, into any foreign territory, without the pre- 
vious authorization of Congress, except it be in fresh pursuit of a 
defeated enemy. The first and ihird are general propositions, 



284 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

declaring the sense of the house in regard to the evils pointed out ; 
and the second and fourth propose the legislative remedies against 
the recurrence of those evils. 

" It will be at once perceived, by this simple statement of the 
propositions, that no other censure is proposed against General 
Jackson himself, than what is merely consequential. His name 
even does not appear in any of the resolutions. The legislature 
of the country, in reviewing the state of the Union, and consider- 
ing the events which have transpired since hs last meeting, finds 
that particular occurrences, of the greatest moment, in many re- 
spects, have taken place near our southern border. I will add, 
that the house has not sought, by any officious intprference with 
the doings of the executive, to gain jurisdiction ovei this matter. 
The president, in his message at the opening of the session, com- 
municated the very information on which it was proposed to act. 
I would ask, for what purpose? That we should fold our arms 
and yield a tacit acquiescence, even if we supposed that informa- 
tion disclosed alarming events, not merely as it regards the peace 
of the country, but in respect to its constitution and character ? 
Impossible. In communicating these papers, and voluntarily 
calling the attention of Congress to the subject, the president must 
himself have intended, that we should apply any remedy that we 
might be able to devise. Having the subject thus regularly and 
fairly before us, and proposing merely to collect the sense of the 
house upon certain important transactions which it discloses, with 
the view to the passage of such laws as may be demanded by the 
public interest, I repeat, that there is no censure anywhere, except 
such as is strictly consequential upon our legislative action. The 
supposition of every new law, having for its object to prevent the 
recurrence of evil, is, that something has happened which ought 
not to have taken place, and no other than this indirect sort of 
censure will flow from the resolutions before the committee. 

" Having thus given my view of the nature and character of 
the propositions under consideration, I am far from intimating 
that it is not my purpose to go into a full, a free, and a thorough 
investigation of the facts, and of the principles of law, public, mu- 
nicipal, and constitutional, involved in them. And, while I trust 
I shall speak with the decorum due to the distinguished officers 
of the government, whose proceedings are to be examined, I shall 
exercise the independence which belongs to me as a representative 
of the people, in freely and fully submitting my sentiments." 

Mr. Clay first takes up the treaty of Fort Jackson, of August, 
1814, which he regarded as the cause of the war. After reading 
enough of it to show its character, he said : — 

" I have never perused this instrument until within a few days 
pastj and I have read it with the deepest mortification and regret. 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 285 

A more dictatorial spirit I have never seen displayed in any in- 
strument. I would challenge an examination of all the records 
of diplomacy, not excepting even those in the most haughty pe- 
riod of imperial Rome, when she was carrying her arms into the 
barbarian nations that surrounded her, and I do not believe a sol- 
itary instance can be found of such an inexorable spirit of domi- 
nation pervading a compact purporting to be a treaty of peace. 
It consists of the most severe and humiliating demands — of the 
surrender of a large territory — of the privilege of making roads 
through the remnant which was retained — of the right of estab- 
lishing trading-houses — of the obligation of delivering into our 
hands their projjhets ! And all this of a wretched people reduced 
to the last extremity of distress, whose miserable existence we 
have to preserve by a voluntary stipulation to furnish them with 
bread ! When did all-conquering and desolating Rome ever fail 
to respect the altars and the gods of those whom she subjugated ? 
Let me not be told that these prophets were imposters, who de- 
ceived the Indians. They were their prophets ; the Indians be- 
lieved and venerated them, and it is not for us to dictate a re- 
ligious belief to them. It does not belong to the holy character 
of the religion which we profess, to carry its precepts, by the force 
of the bayonet, into the bosoms of other people. Mild and gen- 
tle persuasion was the great instrument employed by the meek 
founder of our religion. We leave to the humane and benevo- 
lent efforts of the reverend professors of Christianity to convert 
from barbarism those unhappy nations yet immersed in its gloom. 
But, sir, spare them their prophets ! spare their delusions ! spare 
their prejudices and superstitions ! spare them even their religion, 
such as it is, from open and cruel violence. When, sir, was that 
treaty concluded "? On the very day after the protocol was sign- 
ed, of the first conference between the American and British com- 
missioners, treating of peace, at Ghent. In the course of that 
negotiation, pretensions so enormous were set up by the other 
party, that, when they were promulgated in this country, there was 
one general burst of indignation throughout the continent. Fac- 
tion itself was silenced, and the firm and unanimous determination 
of all parties was, to fight until the last man fell in the ditch, rather 
than submit to such ignominious terms. What a contrast is ex- 
hibited between the contemporaneous scenes of Ghent and of 
Fort Jackson ! What a powerful voucher would the British com 
missioners have been furnished with, if they could have got hold 
of that treaty !" 

It can not but be seen, that the materials of this debate had a 
direct and powerful bearing on the commanding general, who had 
assumed the responsibility, and committed the acts which the reso- 
lution submitted to the house by the committee on military affairs. 



286 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

aimed to disapprove. As already seen, the same conduct, or parts 
of it, had been disapproved by the executive branch of the govern- 
ment, in its secret sessions, almost unanimously. It appears by 
the private correspondence between the president and secretary of 
war, that the former had seriously thought of expressing this dis- 
approbation in his message to Congress. It is also clearly con- 
veyed in the publication in the National Intelligencer, of July 28, 
1818, which was prepared by Mr. Wirt at the request of the pres- 
ident, read at a cabinet meeting, and published under executive 
sanction. But Mr. Adams's reasonings, not in positive vindication 
of the general, but for the defence of the government of the United 
States against that of Spain, prevailed, and the president was re- 
luctantly compelled, in his public and official acts, to connive at 
that which he disapproved, in order to maintain his position in re- 
lation to the Spanish government. He had authorized the army 
to enter Spanish territory under specific orders ; those orders had 
been " transcended," to use his own language ; and Mr. Adams 
maintained, that this overstepping of orders, in the commanding 
general — however it might be a just ground of censure on the 
agent, for the act, as between him and his government — could not 
be pleaded, as between the government of the United States and 
that of Spain, as an answer to the complaint of the latter ; that 
Spain could, and probably would, hold the government of the Uni- 
ted States responsible for each and every act of its agents, whether 
done in obedience to orders or not. Spain had been dereUct of 
duty, in not preventing her Indians from doing injury to citizens 
of the United States, as bound by treaty ; the government of the 
United States, in defence of its own jurisdiction, had assumed to 
do that which Spain had engaged to do, but failed in fulfilling ; in 
the accomplishment of this object of self-defence, the agent of the 
United States had "transcended" his orders, which was a matter 
between him and his own government ; but Mr. Adams, if the au- 
thor rightly apprehends his position on that occasion, maintained, 
with apparently unanswerable reasons, that, as between the two 
governments in controversy, no blame could be attached to the 
United States ; that the neglect of fulfilling treaty stipulations on 
the part of Spain, had compelled the United States, in self-defence, 
to pass into her jurisdiction, in pursuit of a foe; that any deviation 
from orders on the part of agents of the United States, in execu- 
ting this duty, was incidental to the main question, and ought 
not to affect it ; and that the government of the United States, 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 287 

having, for good and defensible reasons, ordered its forces into the 
Spanish territory, was bound to defend the campaign in whole and 
in part, as between itself and the Spanish government. All that 
could be required of the president of the United States, in the way 
of satisfaction to Spain, was to restore the Spanish posts, which had 
been taken contrary to orders. This was immediately done. 

It is evident, therefore, from this view of the case, that the re- 
sponsibility of the government of the United States to Spain, is 
distinct and separate from that of General Jackson to the authority 
under which he acted, and that the justification of his government 
is not identical with his own justification ; but that the latter re- 
mained an open question for the consideration of the proper author- 
ities. It was on this ground, that the resolution cited at the head 
of this chapter, was reported to the house, and came under debate. 
The president, in his message, had communicated the facts to 
Congress, and in that way, submitted them to such action of the 
legislative department, as they, in their wisdom and sense of duty, 
might think proper to institute. It was impossible they should 
overlook them — for they were remarkable and unprecedented. " In 
communicating these papers," said Mr. ^lay, •' and voluntarily 
calling the attention of Congress to the subject, the president him- 
self must have intended, that we should apply any remedy that we 
might be able to devise." 

The earnest disavowal of Mr. Clay, in the opening of his speech 
on this resolution, of all personal disrespect to the president and 
the general, was not uncalled for, in this place, as he professed to 
feel, that he had a duty to perform to the constitution and to the 
country, altogether paramount to these personal and minor rela- 
tions. He had differed, and was at this moment in the midst of a 
difference, with the president, on the question of recognising the 
independence of the South American states, as also on the question 
of internal improvements — which was painful. But it can not, 
with truth, be said, that Mr. Clay differed with Mr. Monroe in these 
matters of the Seminole campaign. It has been seen that they 
agreed, at least, on the point of restoring the Spanish posts ; and 
doubtless they agreed on the other points. But the president, for 
reasons already stated, had concluded not to make any communi- 
cation to Congress that would put General Jackson on his trial, 
but to stop after defending the government of the United States 
against Spain. He had, however, left all the facts in the hands of 
Congress, to deal with them according to their sense of public 



288 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

duty. Both branches of Congress, in the reports of their commit- 
tees, agreed, that they were fit subjects of animadversion. 

The treaty of Fort Jackson, itself dictated by General Jackson, 
as commissioner, is fairly represented by Mr. Clay, in the passage 
of his speech above cited. It can not be read but with feelings 
of mortification and profound sympathy. A governor of the state 
of Georgia declared it as his opinion, that it was the cause of the 
Seminole war of that time. But when General Jackson was called 
to the field, it was too late to remedy the faults of this treaty, or 
its unfortunate consequences. " The fatal blow," said Mr. Clay, 
•' had been struck, in the destruction of Fowltown, and in the 
dreadful massacre of Lieutenant Scott and his detachment; and the 
only duty which remained to him [General Jackson], was to ter- 
minate this unhappy contest." Mr. Clay continued : — 

" The first circumstance which, in the course of his perform- 
ing that duty, fixed our attention, has filled me with regret. It 
was the execution of the Indian chiefs. How, I ask, did they 
come into our possession? Was it in the course of fair, and 
open, and honorable war? No ; but by means of deception — by 
hoisting foreign colors on the staff from which the stars and stripes 
should alone have floated. Thus ensnared, the Indians were 
taken on shore ; and without ceremony, and without delay, were 

hung. Hang an Indian ! 

******** 

" But, sir, I have said that you have no right to practise, under 
color of retaliation, enormities on the Indians. I will advance in 
support of this position, as applicable to the origin of all law, the 
principle, that whatever has been the custom, from the commence- 
ment of a subject, whatever has been the uniform usage, coeval 
and coexistent with the subject to which it relates, becomes its 
fixed law. Such is the foundation of all common law; and such, 
I believe, is the principal foundation of all public or international 
law. If, then, it can be shown that from the first settlement of the 
colonies, on this part of the American continent, to the present 
time, we have constantly abstained from retaliating upon the In- 
dians the excesses practised by them toward us, we are morally 
bound by this invariable usage, and can not lawfully change it 
without the most cogent reasons. So far as my knowledge ex- 
tends, from the first settlement at Plymouth or at Jamestown, it 
has not been our practice to destroy Indian captives, combatants or 
non-combatants. I know of but one deviation from the code which 
regulates the warfare between civilized communities, and that was 
the destruction of Indian towns, which was supposed to be author- 
ized upon the ground that we could not bring the war to a termi- 
nation but by destroying the means which nourished it. With this 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 289 

single exception, the other principles of the laws of civilized nations 
are extended to them, and are thus made law in regard to them. 
When did this humane custom, by which, in consideration of their 
ignorance, and our enlightened condition, the rigors of war were 
mitigated, begin ? At a time when we were weak, and they com- 
paratively strong; when they were the lords of the soil, and we 
were seeking, from the vices, from the corruptions, from the reli- 
gious intolerance, and from the oppressions of Europe, to gain an 
asylum among them. And when is it proposed to change this 
custom, to substitute for it the bloody maxims of barbarous ages, 
and to interpolate the Indian public law with revolting cruelties? 
At a time when the situation of the two parties is totally changed — 
when we are powerful and they are weak — at a time when, to use a 
figure drawn from their own subhme eloquence, the poor children 
of the forest have been driven by the great wave which has flowed 
in from the Atlantic ocean almost to the base of the Rocky moun- 
tains, and overwhelming them in its terrible progress, has left no 
other remains of hundreds of tribes, now extinct, than those which 
indicate the remote existence of their former companion, the mam- 
moth of the new world ! Yes, sir, it is at this auspicious period 
of our country, when we hold a proud and lofty station among the 
first nations of the world, that we are called upon to sanction a de- 
parture from the established laws and usages which have regulated 
our Indian hostilities. And does the honorable gentleman from 
Massachusetts expect, in this august body, this enlightened assem- 
bly of Christians and Americans, by glowing appeals to our pas- 
sions, to make us forget our principles, our religion, our clemency, 
and our humanity? Why is it that we have not practised toward 
the Indian tribes the right of retaliation, now for the first time as- 
serted in regard to them ? It is because it is a principle proclaimed 
by reason, and enforced by every respectable writer on the law of 
nations, that retaliation is only justifiable as calculated to produce 
effect in the war. Vengeance is a new motive for resorting to it. 
If retaliation will produce no effect on the enemy, we are bound 
to abstain fi-om it by every consideration of humanity and of jus- 
tice. Will it then produce effect on the Indian tribes ? No ; they 
care not about the execution of those of their warriors who are 
taken captive. They are considered as disgraced by the very cir- 
cumstance of their captivity, and it is often mercy to the unhappy 
captive to deprive him of his existence. The poet evinced a pro- 
found knowledge of the Indian character, when he put into the 
mouth of the son of a distinguished chief, about to be led to the 
etake and tortured by his victorious enemy, the words : — 

* Begin, ye tormentors ! your threats are in vain : 
The son of Alknomook will never complain.'" 

But the execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister, whose case is 

mentioned in the resolution of the committee reported to the house 



290 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

as a subject of disapprobation — and which is the only subject of 
censure embodied in this resolution — is a case of peculiar atrocity, 
■-\ view of all existing law. These men claimed to be British sub- 
jects — probably they were. It is also understood, that they were 
traders witfe the Indians. For the question at issue, it may be 
o-ranted, that they identified themselves with the Seminoles, as en- 
emies of the United States, and did all they could, by their advice, 
and by any means in their power, to aid and give the Indians suc- 
cor. The question is, whether they were lawfully, or unlawfully 
executed ? It is obvious at first sight, from their position and re- 
lations, as identified with the enemy, that, having fallen into the 
hands of the American general, they could only be held and treated 
as prisoners-of-war, to be disposed of as the proper authorities 
should afterward determine. There was no other existing or known 
law for such a case. But the commanding general sav/ fit to cause 
them to be arraigned before a court-martial, which was detailed for 
that purpose, and to be tried on certain charges and specifications. 
This, as can not fail to be seen, was an arrogation of unlawful power, 
inasmuch as the prisoners, the moment they became such, were in 
the hands of the civil law, and could not be touched by the martial 
code. The organization of this court, however, was a pretence of 
proceeding according to the rules and articles of war. It is no 
matter what the sentence of the court was. It must be unlawful, 
since the prisoners were not amenable to it. But, in regard to one 
of them, Ambrister, not being satisfactory to the commanding gen- 
eral, it was by him arbitrarily set aside, and Ambrister was ordered 
to execution ! and was executed ! It would have been equally 
lawful, if both had been put to death without sentence. 

In the orders given for the execution of these men, the general 
said, that " it is an established principle of the law of nations, that 
any individual of a nation making war against the citizens of any 
other nation, they being at peace, forfeits his allegiance, and be- 
comes an outlaw and a pirate." This, then, being the general's 
own interpretation of the law of nations — a law, by-the-by, which 
knows nothing of capital punishment for individuals — was the rule 
under which these men suffered death ! — a law made for the occa- 
sion ! In his letter to the secretary of war, the general says : 
•* These individuals were tried under my orders, legally convicted 
as exciters of this savage and negro war, legally condemned, and 
most justly punished for their iniquities." " The Lord deliver 
us," says Mr. Clay, " from such legal conviction, and such legal 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 291 

condemnation ! I know but little of military law ; and what has 
happened, has certainly not created in me a taste for acquiring a 
knowledge of more !" 

So far is the principle on which these unfortunate men suffered, 
from being a correct one, it is a well-known practice for the sub- 
jects of one government to enter into the military service of an- 
other, and be found fighting against a nation with which their own 
is at peace. If the law of nations applies to such cases at all, it 
extends to them all the recognised rights of prisoners-of-war, if 
they fall into the hands of their opponents in the field. When 
Great Britain was at peace with Spain, troops composed of British 
subjects were raised in England, and sailed openly from London, 
to join those held by the law as rebels, to fight against the govern- 
ment of Spain, and to dethrone legitimacy. Did they expect, if 
taken prisoners, to be hung as "outlaws and pirates?" On the 
same principle, in case of war between the United States and any 
nation with which Great Britain is at peace, every adopted citizen 
of the United States, that was born a British subject, being always 
claimed as such, could be lawfully hanged, if taken prisoner, on 
land or water. This doctrine of perpetual allegiance, is not peculiar 
to Great Britain, but is claimed by other nations of Europe, and 
the operation of the principle, now under consideration, would be 
the same in all such cases. If every exciter of war in countries 
foreign to his own, is to be held and treated " as an outlaw and » 
pirate," by the third party, what is to become of American sym 
pathisers with the southern republics, while they were in rebellion 
against the parent state ? or what will be the fate of those who built 
ships at Fell's Point, Baltimore, for the patriots, if they should hap^ 
pen to be caught in Spain ? What, under this rule, will become 
of those Americans who made speeches in Congress in favor of 
Greece, and others who aided her, in rebellion against the Sublime 
Porte, if they should happen to visit Constantinople ? On this 
principle. Napoleon might have treated William Pitt, the prime 
minister of England, " as an outlaw and a pirate," if the minister, 
who had caused the emperor more trouble, by stirring up wars in 
Europe against him, than any other man, had happened to fall into 
his hands. Napoleon did indeed order the Duke d'Enghien to be 
shot without law, and the world will never pardon him for it. Will 
those American citizens, who aided the Texans in their struggles 
against Mexico, consent to be treated " as outlaws and pirates," 
when they happen to be found beyond the Rio del Norte ? It will 



I 



292 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

not, surely, be said, that the Indian tribes have no right to make 
war, when every treaty between them and the United States recog- 
nises that prerogative. Who, then, can atone to the laws of the 
civilized world, for the execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister ? 

Mr. Clay said : 

" However guilty these men were, they should not have been 
condemned or executed without the authority of the law. I will 
not dwell, at this time, on the effect of these precedents in foreign 
countries ; but I shall not pass unnoticed their dangerous influence 
in our own country. Bad examples are generally set in the cases 
of bad men, and often remote from the central government. It 
was in the provinces that were laid the abuses and the seeds of the 
ambitious projects which overturned the liberties of Rome. I be- 
seech the committee not to be so captivated with the charms of 
eloquence, and the appeals made to our passions and our sympa 
thies, as to forget the fundamental principles of our government. 
The influence of a bad example will often be felt, when its authors 
and all the circumstances connected with it are no longer remem- 
bered. I know of but one analogous instance of the execution of 
a prisoner, and that has brought more odium than almost any other 
incident on the unhappy emperor of France. I allude to the in- 
stance of the execution of the unfortunate member of the Bourbon 
house. He sought an asylum in the territories of Baden. Bona- 
parte despatched a corps of gen-d'armes to the place of his retreat, 
seized him, and brought him to the dungeons of Vincennes. He 
was there tried by a court-martial, condemned, and shot. There, 
as here, was a violation of neutral territory ; there, the neutral 
ground was not stained with the blood of him whom it should 
have protected. And there is another most unfortunate difference 
for the American people. The Duke d'Enghien was executed 
according to his sentence. It is said by the defenders of Napoleon, 
that the duke had been machinating, not merely to overturn the 
French government, but against the life of its chief. If that were 
true, he might, if taken in France, have been legally executed. 
Such was the odium brought upon the instruments of this transac- 
tion, that those persons who have been even suspected of partici- 
pation in it, have sought to vindicate themselves from what they 
appear to have considered as an aspersion, before foreign courts." 

Surely, after the generous construction, which had been put by 
Mr. Clay on the motives of General Jackson for acts of the kind 
noticed by him on this occasion, in addition to that which was 
comprehended in the resolution before the house, a not less gen- 
erous allowance should be extended to the discharge of that duty, 
to which Mr. Clay professed to feel himself constrained, in vindi- 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 293 

cation of the rights of humanity, the usages of civiHzed society, the 
laws of the land, and the constitution of the republic, all which he 
considered had been violated. Could General Jackson expect, 
that the responsibility assumed by him, should receive any other 
sanction than an approval of his motives in the use of such extra- 
ordinary, unconstitutional, and dangerous powers, in hanging the 
Indian chiefs, in the execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister, and 
in taking the Spanish posts — all in violation of law and precedent, 
and a part in violation of positive orders ? He claimed to have 
done it all for the good of the country, and it was generously ad- 
mitted he did. Some may have put a less charitable construction 
upon it since that time, in view of other transactions of the life of the 
same individual. But the constitution, the laws, and the usages 
of civilized and mitigated war, could not be bartered with a com- 
pliment. There were at least some who felt, that these claimed a 
vindication so much the more emphatic and decisive, when the 
acts which violated them were sustained in consideration of the 
motives and peculiar circumstances of the case. The committee 
who reported the resolution, and Mr. Clay also, disavowed the 
design of passing censure on the general ; they only proposed, as 
a duty to the constitution, to the laws, and to the country, to dis- 
approve the acts, and to record this disapprobation as a bar to their 
being drawn in precedent as authority for other public agents, or 
captains, in future time. But the general and his friends vindica- 
ted the acts as lawful ! 

The acts of invading and reducing the Spanish posts, after Con- 
gress had been advised by a message from the president, that no 
such thing would be done — another proof that no such orders were 
given — are then noticed by Mr. Clay, the last of which is recited 
by him as follows : — 

" On the 23d of May, on his way home, he receives a letter 
from the commandant of Pensacola, intimating his surprise at the 
invasion of the Spanish territory, and the acts of hostility per- 
formed by the American army, and his determination, if persisted 
in, to employ force to repel them. Let us pause and examine the 
proceeding of the governor, so very hostile and affrontive in the 
view of General Jackson. Recollect that he was governor of 
Florida ; that he had received no orders from his superiors, to 
allow a passage to the American army ; that he had heard of the 
reduction of St. Marks ; and that General Jackson, at the head of 
his army, was approaching in the direction of Pensacola. He had 
seen the president's message of the 25th of March, and reminded 



294 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

General Jackson of it, to satisfy him that the American govern- 
ment could not have authorized all those measures. I can not 
read the allusion made by the governor to that message, without 
feeling that the charge of insincerity, which it implied, had at least 
but too much the appearance of truth in it. Could the governor 
have done less than write some such letter'? We have only to reverse 
situations, and to suppose him to have been an American governor. 
General Jackson says, that when he received that letter, he no 
longer hesitated. No, sir, he did no longer hesitate. He received 
it on the 23d, he was in Pensacola on the 24th, and immediately 
after set himself before the fortress of San Carlos de Barancas, 
which he shortly reduced. Vcni, vidi, vici. Wonderful energy! 
Admirable promptitude ! Alas, that it had not been an energy 
and a promptitude within the pale of the constitution, and accord- 
ing to the orders of the chief magistrate. It is impossible to give 
any definition of war, that would not comprehend these acts. It 
was open, undisguised, and unauthorized hostility." 

In reply to Mr. Holmes, of Massachusetts, Mr. Clay said . — 
" The gentleman from Massachusetts will pardon me for saying, 
that he has undertaken what even his talents are not competent to 
— the maintenance of directly contradictory propositions, that it 
was right in General Jackson to take Pensacola, and wrong in the 
president to keep it. The gentleman has made a greater mistake 
than he supposes General Jackson to have done in attacking Pen- 
sacola for an Indian town, by attempting the defence both of the 
president and General Jackson. If it were right in him to seize 
the place, it is impossible that it should have been right in the 
president immediately to surrender it. We, sir, are the support- 
ers of the president. We regret that we can not support General 
Jackson also. The gentleman's liberality is more comprehensive 
than ours. I approve with all my heart of the restoration of Pen- 
sacola. I think St. Marks ought, perhaps, to have been also 
restored ; but I say this with doubt and diffidence. That the 
president thought the seizure of the Spanish posts was an act of 
war, is manifest from his opening message, in which he says, that 
to have retained them, would have changed our relations with 
Spain, to do which the power of the executive was incompetent 
Congress alone possessing it. The president has, in this instance, 
deserved well of his country. He has taken the only course which 
he could have pursued, consistent with the constitution of the land. 
And I defy the gentleman to make good both his positions, that 
the general was right in taking, and the president right in giving 
up, the posts. 

[Mr. Holmes explained. We took those posts, he said, to keep 
them from the hands of the enemy, and, in restoring them, made 
it a condition that Spain should not let our enemy have them. 
"We said to her, " Here is your dagger ; we found it in the hands of 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 295 

our enemy, and, having wrested it from him, we restore it to you, 
in the hope that you will take better care of it for the future."] 

"The gentleman from Massachusetts is truly unfortunate ; fact 
or principle is always against him. The Spanish posts were not 
in the possession of the enemy. One old Indian only was found 
in the Barancas, none in Pensacola, none in St. Marks. There 
was not even the color of a threat of Indian occupation as it regards 
Pensacola and the Barancas. Pensacola was to be restored un- 
conditionally, and might, therefore, immediately have come into 
the possession of the Indians, if they had the power and the will 
to take it. The gentleman is in a dilemma from which there is 
no escape. He gave up General Jackson when he supported the 
president, and gave up the president when he supported General 
Jackson. I rejoice to have seen the president manifesting, by the 
restoration of Pensacola, his devotedness to the constitution. When 
the whole country was ringing with plaudits for its capture, I said, 
and I said alone, in the limited circle in which I moved, that the 
president must surrender it ; that he could not hold it. It is not 
my intention to inquire, whether the army was or was not constitu- 
tionally marched into Florida. It is not a clear question, and I 
am inclined to think that the express authority of Congress ought 
to have been asked. ***** 

But, if the president had the power to march an army into Flor- 
ida, without consulting Spain, and without the authority of Con- 
gress, he had no power to authorize any act of hostility against her. 
If the gentleman had even succeeded in showing that an authority 
was conveyed by the executive to General Jackson to take the 
Spanish posts, he would only have established that unconstitutional 
orders had been given, and thereby transferred the disapprobation 
from the military officer to the executive. But no such orders 
were, in truth, given. The president acted in conformity to the 
constitution, when he forbade the attack of a Spanish fort, and 
when, in the same spirit, he surrendered the posts themselves. 

" I will not trespass much longer upon the time of the committee ; 

but I trust I shall be indulged with some few reflections upon the 

danger of permitting the conduct on which it has been my painful 

duty to animadvert, to pass without a solemn expression of the 

disapprobation of this house. Recall to your recollection the free 

nations which have gone before us. Where are they now ? 

' Gone glimmering through the dream of things that were, 
A school-boy's tale, the wonder of an hour.' 

And how have they lost their liberties ? If we could transport 

ourselves back to the ages when Greece and Rome flourished in 

their greatest prosperity, and, mingling in the throng, should ask 

a Grecian, if he did not fear that some daring military chieftain, 

covered with glory, some Philip or Alexander, would one day 

overthrow the liberties of his country, the confident and indignant 

Vol. L — 13 



296 THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 

Grecian would exclaim, ' No ! no ! we have nothing to fear from 
our heroes ; our liberties will be eternal.' If a Roman citizen had 
been asked, if he did not fear that the conqueror of Gaul might 
establish a throne upon the ruins of public liberty, he would have 
instantly repelled the unjust insinuation. Yet Greece fell ; Caesar 
passed the Rubicon, and the patriotic arm even of Brutus could 
not preserve the liberties of his devoted country ! The celebrated 
Madame de Stael, in her last and perhaps her best work, has said, 
that in the very year, almost the very month, when the president of 
the directory declared that monarchy would never more show its 
frightful head in France, Bonaparte, with his grenadiers, entered 
the palace of St. Cloud, and dispersing, with the bayonet, the 
deputies of the people, deliberating on the affairs of the state, laid 
the foundation of that vast fabric of despotism which overshadowed 
all Europe. I hope not to be misunderstood. I am far from inti- 
mating that General Jackson cherishes any designs inimical to the 
liberties of the country. I believe his intentions to be pure and 
patriotic. I thank God that he would not, but I thank him still 
more that he could not if he would, overturn the liberties of the 
republic. But precedents, if bad, are fraught with the most dan- 
gerous consequences. Man has been described, by some of those 
who have treated of his nature, as a bundle of habits. The defi- 
nition is much truer when applied to governments. Precedents 
are their habits. There is one important difference between the 
"ormation of habits by an individual and by governments. He 
contracts it only after frequent repetition. A single instance fixes 
the habit and determines the direction of governments. Against 
the alarming doctrine of unlimited discretion in our military com- 
manders when applied even to prisoners of war, I must enter my 
protest. It begins upon them ; it will end on us. I hope our 
happy form of government is to be perpetual. But, if it is to be 
preserved, it must be by the practice of virtue, by justice, by 
moderation, by magnanimity, by greatness of soul, by keeping a 
watchful and steady eye on the executive; and, above all, by 
holding to a strict accountability the military branch of the public force. 
" We are fighting a great moral battle, for the benefit, not only 
of our country, but of all mankind. The eyes of the whole world 
are in fixed attention upon us. One, and the largest portion of it, 
is gazing with contempt, with jealousy, and with envy ; the other 
portion, with hope, with confidence, and with afiection. Every- 
where the black cloud of legitimacy is suspended over the world, 
save only one bright spot, which breaks out from the political 
hemisphere of the west, to enlighten, and animate, and gladden 
the human heart. Obscure that, by the downfall of liberty here, 
and all mankind are enshrouded in a pall of universal darkness. 
To you, Mr. Chairman, belongs the high privilege of transmitting, 
unimpaired, to posterity, the fair character and liberty of our coun 



THE CAUSE OF GREAT EFFECTS. 297 

try. Do you expect to execute this high trust, by trampling, or 
suffering to be trampled down, law, justice, the constitution, and 
the rights of the people? by exhibiting examples of inhumanity, 
and cruelty, and ambition ? When the minions of despotism 
heard, in Europe, of the seizure of Pensacola, how did they 
chuckle, and chide the admirers of our institutions, tauntingly 
pointing to the demonstration of a spirit of injustice and aggran- 
dizement made by our country, in the midst of an amicable nego- 
tiation. Behold, said they, the conduct of those who are constantly 
reproaching kings. You saw how those admirers were astounded 
and hung their heads. You saw, too, when that illustrious man, 
who presides over us, adopted his pacific, moderate, and just 
course, how they once more lifted up their heads with exultation 
and delight beaming in their countenances. And you saw how 
those minions themselves were finally compelled to unite in the 
general praises bestowed upon our government. Beware how you 
forfeit this exalted character. Beware how you give a fatal sanc- 
tion, in this infant period of our republic, scarcely yet two-score 
years old, to military insubordination. Remember that Greece 
had her Alexander, Rome her Caesar, England her Cromwell, 
France her Bonaparte, and that if we would escape the rock on 

which they split, we must avoid their errors. 

******* 

" I hope gentlemen will deliberately survey the awful isthmus 
on which we stand. They may bear down all opposition ; they 
may even vote the general the public thanks ; they may carry him 
triumphantly through this house. But, if they do, in my humble 
judgment, it will be a triumph of the principle of insubordination, 
a triumph of the military over the civil authority, a triumph over 
the powers of this house, a triumph over the constitution of the 
land. And I pray most devoutly to Heaven, that it may not 
prove, in its ultimate effects and consequences, a triumph over the 
liberties of the people." 

The several stages of action, through which the resolution of 
censure reported by the committee on military affairs passed, while 
under debate, resulted in a majority against it, ranging from thirty 
to forty-six, in a house of one hundred and seventy members pres- 
ent. So the conduct of General Jackson was not disapproved. 

It can not but be observed, since the character of General 
Jackson stands so strongly developed before the world, that the 
part taken by Mr. Clay on this occasion, is sufficient to account 
for all that afterward occurred of an unpleasant nature, in the rela- 
tions of these two individuals, as disclosed in other chapters of 
this work. Could such a speech ever be forgiven by the subject 
of it? Was it not the cause of great effects? 



298 



THE MISSOURI QUESTIOW. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 

In the history of the United States, there has not, perhaps, been 
a more critical moment, arising from the violence of domestic ex- 
citement, than in the agitation of the Missouri question, from 
1S18 to 1821, unless it be the attempt at nullification by South 
Carolina, in 1832-'33. In case of the actual collision of force with 
force, the latter, probably, in the circumstances of the case, could 
have been quelled more easily than the former, simply because it 
could not bring to its aid the whole southern section of the Union ; 
whereas, that portion of the country was united on the Missouri 
question. 

The arguments on both sides were forcible, in view of ttie re- 
spective parties, urged by their own feelings and interests. It was 
maintained, on the one hand, that the compromise of the federal 
constitution, regarding slavery, respected only its existing limits at 
the time ; that it was most remote from the views of the parties to 
this arrangement, to have the domain of slavery extended on that 
basis ; that the fundamental principles of the American revolution, 
and of the government and institutions erected upon it, were hos- 
tile to slavery ; that the compromise was simply a toleration of 
things that were, and not a basis for things to be ; that these secu- 
rities of slavery as it existed, would be forfeited by an extension 
of the system ; that the honor of the republic before the world, 
and its moral influence with mankind in favor of freedom, were 
identified with the advocacy of principles of universal emancipa- 
tion ; that the act of 1787, which established the territorial gov- 
ernment north and west of the river Ohio, prohibiting slavery for 
ever therefrom, was a public recognition and avowal of the prin- 
ciples and designs of the people of the United States, in regard 
lo new states and territories, north and west ; and that the propo- 
sal to establish slavery in Missouri, was a violation of all these 
great and fundamental principles. 



II 



THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 299 

On the other hand, it was maintained, that slavery was incorpo- 
rated in the system of society as established in Louisiana, which 
comprehended the territory of Missouri, when purchased from 
France in 1803 ; that the faith of the United States was pledged 
by treaty to all the inhabitants of that wide domain, to maintain 
their rights and privileges on the same footing with the tenants of 
the original federal jurisdiction ; and consequently, that, slavery 
being a part of their state of society, it would be a violation of 
federal engagements to abolish it without their consent. Nor 
could the federal government — as they maintained — ^prescribe the 
abolition of slavery to any part of said territory as a condition of 
being erected into a state of the Union, if they were otherwise en- 
tided to it on the federal platform. It might as well, they said, be 
required of them to abolish any other municipal regulation, or to 
annihilate any other attribute of sovereignty. If the federal au- 
thorities had made an improper or ill-advised treaty in the pur- 
chase of Louisiana, they maintained, it would be manifest injus- 
tice to make the citizens of this newly-acquired portion of their 
jurisdiction, suffer on that account. They claimed, that they 
were received as a slaveholding community, on the same footing 
with other slave states, and that the existence or non-existence of 
slavery could not be made a question, when they presented 
themselves at the door of the capitol of the republic for a state 
charter. 

Such was the feehng, and such comprehensively were the argu- 
ments, in the two great sections of the Union, when the territory 
of Missouri, in 181S, asserted its claim to be incorporated as a 
state. The preparatory act of Congress, required to authorize a 
convention of the people of the territory to form a state-constitu- 
tion, was taken up in the session of 1818-'] 9. In the house of 
representatives, the following resolutions were inserted in the 
bill :— 

" That the further introduction of slavery, or involuntary servi- 
tude, be prohibited, except for the punishment of crimes, whereof 
the party shall have been fully convicted." Yeas 87 — nays 76. 

"And that all children born within the said state, after the ad- 
mission thereof into the Union, shall be free at the age of twenty- 
five years." Yeas 82 — nays 78. 

The final action of the house, to incorporate these restrictions 
in the bill, was, yeas 91 — nays 82. 

But the senate rejected these conditions, and the house ad- 



300 THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 

hering, the bill failed. Consequently, this session of Congress 
passed over, without conferring any authority on the people of 
Missouri, to consummate their purpose of organizing as a state. 
As may be imagined, it was the occasion of great excitement 
among the people of the territory ; and from this time to the meet- 
ing of the next Congress, the whole Union was agitated. The 
legislatures of the states took up the subject, passed resolutions in 
favor and against the restrictions, according to their respective lo- 
cahties and feelings, and remitted copies to each other, and to the 
general government. Popular assemblies were convened in all 
parts of the country, to debate the question, adopt resolutions, 
originate petitions to Congress, and for other demonstrations of 
the kind. The press opened and kept up a continuous fire from 
all quarters, and multitudes of pamphleteers were in the field, till 
the whole land was in a blaze of excitement. 

It was in this state of the pubhc mind, that the sixteenth Con- 
gress was convened, in the fall of 1819, and the people of Mis- 
souri knocked again at its doors, demanding authority to organize 
as a member of the Union — themselves in a state of feeling not 
at all soothed by the course which had been pursued, in the sus- 
pension of their claims, and in the doubts which had been brought 
over their prospects. 

As early in the session, as December 14, Mr. Taylor, of New 
York, brought forward, in the house, the following resolution : 
" That a committee be appointed to inquire into the expediency 
of prohibiting by law the introduction of slaves into the territories 
of the United States west of the Mississippi ;" and the next day, 
December 15, when it came up, he moved to postpone the bill to 
authorize a convention of the people of Missouri to form a state 
constitution, till the first Monday in February. Mr. Scott, dele- 
gate from Missouri, said he believed, if this postponement were 
ordered, the people of Missouri would proceed to organize a state 
government without waiting for authority from Congress. It was, 
however, postponed to the second Monday in January, and Mr. 
Taylor was placed at the head of a committee of inquiry raised 
on his motion, above cited. 

December 28, Mr. Taylor reported, that he was instructed by 
his committee, to ask leave to be discharged, assigning as a rea- 
son, that they could not agree on anything calculated to harmon- 
ize opinion. The request was granted. Mr. Taylor then moved 
the following resolution : " That a committee be appointed to 



i 



THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 301 

report a bill prohibiting the further introduction of slaves into the 
territories of the United States west of the Mississippi." 

In the debate on this motion, Mr. Mercer, of Virginia, is re- 
ported in Niles's Register, to have used the following expression : 
" That, standing here, as the representative of the people west of 
the Mississippi, he should record his vote against suffering the 
dark cloud of inhumanity, which now darkened his country, from 
roUing on beyond the peaceful shores of the Mississippi." Mr. 
Taylor's motion was lost by 82 to 62. 

The majority of the house of representatives, as appeared in 
all test votes on this question, was in favor of a restriction on Mis- 
souri against slavery, while the majority in the senate was against 
a restriction, and the results of repeated conferences between the 
two houses, did not seem to approximate toward any agreement. 
Advantage was taken by the senate, of the application of the dis- 
trict of Maine to become a state, to incorporate both claims into 
one bill, and in that way, force both upon the other house, with- 
out condition. But the house of representatives refused to unite 
in it. The question, however, was at last settled in conference, 
by the following compromise in the eighth section of the bill for 
Missouri : " That in all the territory ceded by France to the Uni- 
ted States, under the name of Louisiana, which lies north of thirty- 
six degrees and thirty minutes north latitude, not included within 
the limits contemplated by this act, slavery and involuntary servi- 
tude, otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the 
parties shall have been duly convicted, shall be, and is hereby, 
for ever prohibited — provided always, that any person escaping 
into the same, from whom labor or service is lawfully claimed in 
any state or territory of the United States, such fugitive may be 
lawfully reclaimed and conveyed to the person claiming his or her 
labor or service as aforesaid." 

The debates during this session, on this subject, were protract- 
ed, animated, and often in a high degree acrimonious. The mem- 
bers of Congress brought with them the feelings which pervaded 
the states and sections from which they came, and gave utterance 
to them with little restraint — not unfrequently with as little pru- 
dence. The speeches were for the most part characterized with 
strong ingredients of sectional prejudice. There was, however, 
in the midst of this arena of violent strife, one man of truly 
national feeling, calm, but not indifferent, with lofty, but dignified, 
«nd not less anxious porte, looking down upon the scene, as one 



302 THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 

of deep and unutterable concern. Often did he rise to hush the 
tempest, and call back reason to its useful offices. He stood up 
a mediator between the conflicting parties, imploring, entreating, 
beseeching. On one occasion, during these debates, Mr. Clay 
spoke four hours and a half, pouring forth an uninterrupted and 
glowing torrent of his thoughts and feelings, with captivating and 
convincing power. 

On the authority now obtained, and during the recess of Con- 
gress, in the summer of 1820, the people of Missouri proceeded to 
organize a state government, and to establish the authorities of an 
independent commonwealth. As it was the year of the presiden- 
tial election, the duty of forming an electoral college was one of 
the functions of franchise, which the people of the new state were 
called to exercise, at the same time that they voted for their own 
state officers. 

The obstacles they had met with in obtaining authority to or- 
ganize a separate commonwealth, seemed to have driven them into 
an offensive attitude. The constitution which they prepared to 
be submitted to Congress, to obtain federal sanction, before Mis- 
souri could be admitted to all the privileges of a member of the 
family of states, contained a very unnecessary and obnoxious 
clause, apparently aimed at those who had attempted to fasten 
upon them a restriction in the matter of slavery, and which bore 
the aspect of a defiance. It raised a new difficulty, and put 
another bar in their path — a bar, indeed, more formidable than any 
they had yet encountered. The offensive clause was regarded as 
an insult, and roused an indignant feeling throughout the land. It 
could hardly be defended in any quarter. They had apparently 
disarmed their own friends and advocates. 

The obnoxious matter was in these words : " It shall be the 
duty of the general assembly, as soon as may be, to pass such 
laws as may be necessary, to prevent free negroes and mulattoes 
from coming to or settling in this state, under any pretext whatso- 
ever." There was also a clause forbidding the general assembly 
to pass any laws for emancipation, without the consent of the 
owners of slaves. But this latter was scarcely made a point of 
objection, in view of what was regarded as the enormity of the 
former. The constitution of the United States ordains that <' the 
citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immu- 
nities of citizens in the several states." It was well known, that 
colored people, in the free states, were generally regarded as citi- 



THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 303 

zens, and in some states, they are, on prescribed conditions, ad- 
mitted to all the rights of citizenship. Consequently, as was co?i~ 
tended, here was the constitution of a new state put forth in the 
face of the Union, demanding a sanction of the federal authorities, 
in direct violation of the federal constitution. It is true, the ob- 
noxious clause was open to revision and annuiment by the su- 
preme court. The state which had adopted it might say, it was 
their sovereign right to make their own constitution, subject al- 
ways to the authority of the judiciary ; that Congress was not 
competent to act on this question ; that the duty imposed on 
Congress was, to grant a " republican form of government" to 
every new state ; but that they had no right to determine what 
should or should not be its municipal regulations — this latter func- 
tion being an attribute of sovereignty, subject to correction only by 
the federal judiciary. Nevertheless, it can not be denied, that, in 
the circumstances of the case, the clause was offensive, and calcu- 
lated to rouse the violent opposition which actually followed. 

The transmission of the constitution of Missouri to Congress, 
by the president, was the signal of conflict. The committees of 
both houses, to whom it was referred, reported in favor of its being 
sanctioned, and the senate came to a final vote accordingly. But 
it was impossible to accomplish this object in die house of repre- 
sentatives, where the excitement on the subject had become fla- 
grant, destructive aUke of harmony and good order. 

Mr. Clay's private affairs, as elsewhere remarked, had com- 
pelled him to forward his resignation of the office of speaker, at 
the opening of the second session of the sixteenth Congress, 1820 ; 
though still retaining his seat as a member, on account of this 
agitation. It was not convenient for him to go to Washington, 
till late in the winter. It was the 16th of January, 1821, when 
he resumed his seat in the house of representatives. The whole 
of that body seemed at the moment to be in a flame of pas- 
sion on the Missouri question. Fatigued by the contest, and ex- 
asperated with each other, all parties turned instinctively to Mr. 
Clay, for counsel and direction. The position he occupied in 
their affections, respect, and confidence, was favorable — command- 
ing. He talked with all, heard all, consulted with all ; and on the 
2d of February, he moved for a select committee of thirteen — the 
original number of the states — to consider the resolution of the 
senate to admit Missouri into the Union, and to report thereon. 
It was of course granted, and composed of Messrs. Clay, Eustis 



304 THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 

of Mass., Smith of Md., Sargeant of Pa., Lowndes of S. C, Ford 
of N. Y., Campbell of Ohio, Archer of Va., Hartley of N. Y., S. 
Moore of Pa., Cobb of Ga., Tomlinson of Ct., and Butler of N.H. 

On the 10th, Mr. Clay reported, and submitted, by order of the 
committee, the following resolution, as an amendment to that of the 
Senate : — 

" Resolved, That the state of Missouri be admitted into the 
Union on an equal footing with the original states, in all respects 
whatever, wpon the fundamental condition, that the said state shall 
never pass any law preventing any description of persons from 
coming to and settling in the said state, who now are, or may 
hereafter become, citizens of any of the states of this Union ; and 
provided, also, that the legislature of the said state, by a solemn 
public act, shall declare the assent of the said state to the said fun- 
damental condition, and shall transmit to the president of the 
United States, on or before the fourth Monday in November next, 
an authentic copy of the said act, upon the receipt whereof the 
president, by proclamation, shall announce the fact ; whereupon, 
and without any further proceeding on the part of Congress, the 
admission of said state into the Union shall be considered as com- 
plete ; and provided, further, that nothing herein contained shall 
be construed to take from the state of Missouri, when admitted 
into the Union, the exercise of any right or power which can now 
be constitutionally exercised by any of the original states." 

In support of this resolution, Mr. Clay addressed himself with 
great feeling and power, to both parties, and not unfrequently drew 
tears of sympathy from their hearts. He depicted the state of the 
Union at that momentous crisis; portrayed the contingent pros- 
pects before them, as with a pencil of sunbeams, and as if giving 
utterance to the oracles of prophecy; and besought each one to 
consider what he owed to his country. 

It will be seen by the resolution, that its author had carefully 
consulted the feelings of both parties. But it was all in vain. It 
was rejected in committee of the whole by a vote of 73 to 64, and in 
the house by 83 to 80. It was reconsidered, and again lost. The 
question and the country were now in a most critical condition. 
The next day after the reconsideration of this vote, was the time 
appointed for a public counting of the votes for president and vice- 
president of the United States, and Missouri, not yet admitted into 
the Union, would offer her vote, and claim that it should be 
counted. It was an anxious moment, and the scene apprehended 
was painful to contemplate. 

The two houses had previously arranged as to the place and 



THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 305 

time of tneir joint meeting to count the electoral votes, and had 
moreover ordered, in anticipation of the electoral vote of Missouri 
being challenged, that the vice-president, who was chairman for 
the occasion, should, in case of a challenge, announce the votes, 
first, with that of Missouri, and next without it, to show, as known 
beforehand, tkat, whether the vote of Missouri were counted or 
not, it could not affect the result. This, however, was deemed an 
irregularity, which Mr. Randolph, of the house of representatives, 
maintained, would vitiate the election, and render it invalid. He 
said, while this was under consideration, that "he would rather see 
an interregnum, than to adopt a principle that would destroy the 
foundation on which the presidential office rested ;" assumino-, of 
course, that the mere form of announcing the result, which the 
constitution had not prescribed, was of such importance. 

As was feared, the joint meeting of the two houses on the 14th, 
to count the electoral votes, and proclaim the result, was one of 
turbulent excitement. It was frequently interrupted by simulta- 
neous challenges of the Missouri vote, and calls for information, 
whether it was to be counted ; till at last, when the vote of Mis- 
souri was announced, Mr. Livermore, of New Hampshire, rose 
and said: "Mr. President and Mr. Speaker, I object to receiving 
any votes for president and vice-president from Missouri, as Mis- 
souri is not a state of this Union." This objection was numer- 
ously and clamorously seconded. Confusion and tumult being in 
the ascendant, a senator rose, and with a voice above the wildness 
of the scene, moved, that the senate withdraw, which was imme- 
diately obeyed ; and the house was left in sole possession of the 
field, though far from being reduced to order. One cried, "Mis- 
souri is not a state;" and another, "Missouri is a state." Motion 
after motion was made, and an hour of tumultuous wrangling con- 
sumed, when Mr. Clay succeeded in producing a momentary calm, 
and in moving, that a message be sent to inform the senate, that 
the house was waiting for their attendance to complete the duty 
of counting the votes. The senate accordingly came in, the vote 
of Missouri, during the counting of which the interruption had 
taken place, was again declared, and the whole being gone through, 
the chairman announced the result, first with, and then without, the 
vote of Missouri, stating that in either case it was the same : James 
Monroe was elected president, and Daniel D. Tompkins vice- 
president. 

While the result was being announced, two members of the 



306 THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 

house of representatives rose simultaneously, and demanded 
whether the vote of Missouri was, or was not, counted? The 
speaker of the house pronounced them out of order, and required 
them to resume their seats. 

When the senate had retired, Mr. Randolph, of Virginia, moved 
the following resolutions: — 

^^ Resolved, That the electoral votes of Missouri have this day 
been counted, and do constitute a part of the majority of 231 votes 
given for president, and of 21S votes given for vice-president. 

" Resolved, That the whole number of electors appointed and 
of votes given for president and vice-president, has not been an- 
nounced by the presiding officer of the senate and house of repre- 
sentatives, agreeably to the constitution of the United States, and 
that therefore the proceeding has been irregular and illegal." 

The house was evidently somewhat startled at the principle in- 
volved in this motion. It seemed a* first glance to shake the va- 
lidity of the solemn transaction through which they had just passed, 
and to throw doubts over its binding force ! It was a question, 
whether a vitiating element had been admitted, which corrupted 
and nullified the whole? Evidently Missouri was not one of the 
family of states, in full and complete fellowship. And yet she had 
been permitted to take part, and to have a voice, in this eventful 
act, which was to determine the presiding magistracy of the re- 
public, and establish a head over the senate, for a term of four 
years ! It was alarming to think, that a doubt could be raised as to 
the validity of such a transaction ! Though there was a majority 
of thirty against Mr. Randolph's motion, even that vote demon- 
strated, that there was at least a doubt in many minds. But it was 
necessary, by common consent, to hold the transaction valid^ 
though no one could say, it was exactly as it should be. 

By this time, almost the entire mind of Congress — not to say 
that of the country — had become sore and morbid on this agita- 
ting question. Congress wanted to get rid of it; but how could it 
be done? And who could now define the position and relations 
of Missouri? Was she a state, or a territory? All knew, that 
she would never submit to the jurisdiction of the United States as 
the latter; and what was she to do as a state, without being recog- 
nised in full? Was the vast public domain within her bounds to 
be given up, and the federal jurisdiction to be withdrawn? Or 
was the federal government to enforce its authority there ? These, 
certainly, were grave questions. In this state of feeling, and du- 



THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 307 

ring this interval of doubting and agonizing suspense, Mr. Clay 
was most assiduous and active in his private appeals to the mem- 
bers of both houses. He respectfully demanded of them, " What 
do you propose? We tell you frankly what we wish to do. It 
will never do to leave this matter so. Propound your plan. You 
must come to us; or we must go to you. This business must 
be settled, and settled now, or who can can tell what a year may 
bring forth? We put it to your consciences. Give us a plan, or 
come over to ours." 

Appeals of this kind were not without effect. Mr. Clay watched 
his opportunity, and imagining the time had come, on the 22d of 
February, he moved the following resolution : — 

^^ Resolved, That a committee be appointed, on the part of this 
nouse, jointly, with such committee as may be appointed on the 
part of the senate, to consider and to report to the senate and to 
the house, respectively, whether it be expedient or not to make 
provision for the admission of Missouri into the Union, on the 
same footing as the original states ; and for the due execution of 
the laws of the United States, within Missouri; and if not, 
whether any other, and what provision, adapted to her actual con- 
dition, ought to be made by law." 

This resolution was promptly and gladly adopted by a vote of 
two to one, and a similar resolution passed in the senate, with a 
corresponding good-will. 

Mr. Clay proposed that the committee from the house should 
consist of twenty-three, the number of states at the time, and that 
they should be appointed by ballot. He himself made out the 
list, knowing whom he wanted, and the house conformed, putting 
Mr. Clay at the head of it. The house was glad enough to give 
him this work, and to let him have it all in his own way. It 
was not only a part of his plan to pick his men, but after having 
mustered them, he was resolved to put the question to every indi- 
vidual separately — will you support this plan, or not? To fail 
again, would be fatal, and he resolved to risk nothing. The ques- 
tion must be decided, before it should be reported to the house. 
If his own corps were under good discipline, he knew the result 
with infallible certainty. 

The two committees met in the senate-chamber on the 25th, 
each maintaining its separate organization, Mr. Holmes at the head 
of the senate committee; and before they retired, the Missouri 
question was settled ! It was, however, an arduous session. Mr. 



308 THE MISSOURI QUESTION. 

Clay would consent to nothing, without unanimity, and without a 
pledge from each, that he would support it. In the senate, there 
would be no difficulty, and if the committee of the house would 
go back pledged to support the resolution agreed on, it was known, 
that the unanimous decision of the committee would be the decision 
of the house ; and so it proved. The resolution was in substance 
the same with that reported on the 10th, by the committee of thir- 
teen, and before cited, but more specific. It passed the house on 
the 26th, by a vote of 87 to SI, and was concurred in by the sen- 
ate on the 28th. The conditions prescribed were afterward com- 
plied with by the state of Missouri, and her admission to the Union 
was consummated. 

The pacific adjustment of this question, when all its difficulties 
are considered, was doubtless one of the most masterly achieve- 
ments of man over human society ; nor has there ever been a 
doubt, to whom the country is indebted for such a beneficent 
influence. 

A storm was raised, which all had despaired of quelling. After 
six weeks of the toil and care of one man, there was a great calm. 
Not the slightest breeze of disturbance, on the same account, has 
ever risen from that quarter since ; and the whole nation fully ap- 
preciated its obligations. The people feh, that a mighty incubus 
was removed, and breathing freely again, they fell back into repose, 
and forgot the peril through which they had passed. 

N. B. For further particulars on this subject, see pages 262, 263, and 264, 
Vol. U. 



THB GREAT CONSPIRACY. 309 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

General Jackson'? Renewal of the Charge against Mr, Clay in 1844. — Statement 
of the Charge. — Present Position of the Question. — Mr. Adams' Eighth-of- Jan- 
uary Party in honor of General Jackson. — Its Eflect. — Nomination of General 
Jackson for the Presidency. — The Result. — Examination of the Claims to Plu- 
rality of Votes. — Mr. Clay defrauded. — Character of the Jackson Party. — Deli- 
cacy of Mr. Clay's Position in the House of Representatives on the Presidential 
Question. — Menaces. — First Opening of the Plot. — Mr. Kramer's Letter to the 
Columbian Observer. — Mr. Clay's Card. — Mr. Kremer's Card. — Mr. Clay's 
Appeal to the House. — Mr. Forsyth's Resolution for a Committee of Inquiry. — 
The Debate. — Report of the Committee. — Mr. Kremer's Decline to answer. — 
Unexpected Position of Affairs. — Who wrote Mr. Kremer's Letter of Decline. — 
Position of the Conspirators and Mr. Clay at the End of the First Stage. 

The heading of this chapter is given in anticipation of the evi- 
dence ; but that having been well considered, and being about to 
be offered, the propriety of this denomination of this piece of 
history, is assumed, in the beUef that the facts will be a justifica- 
tion. That it was a great conspiracy, is determined, not only by 
a consideration of its extent, but of its comprehensive influence on 
the destinies of the parties concerned, and on the destiny of a na- 
tion. Though one of the greatest atrocities in the moral history 
of mankind, yielded profit to the actors for a season, it would dis- 
appoint the ends of justice, human and divine, if it could for ever 
purchase impunity. It is the doom of vice to come to judgment. 

"A CARD. 

" Hermitage, May 3, 1844. 
" Gentlemen : My attention has been called to various news- 
paper articles, referring to a letter said to have been written by me 
to General Hamilton, recanting the charge of bargain made against 
Mr. Clay, when he voted for Mr. Adams in 1825. 
•. " To put an end to all such rumors, I feel it to be due to my- 
self to state, that 1 have no recollection of ever having written such 
a letter, and do not believe there is a letter from me to General 
Hamilton, or any one else, that will bear such a construction. Of 
the charges brought against both Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay, at that 
time, I formed my opinion as the country at large did — from facts 



310 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY- 

and circumstances that were indisputable and conclusive ; and I 
may add, that this opinion has undergone no change. 

" If General Hamilton, or any one else, has a letter from me 
on this subject, all that they have to do, is to apply to him for it. 
As for myself, I have no secrets, and do not fear the publication 
of all that I have ever written on this or any other subject. 

"Andrew Jackson. 

"To the Editors of the Nashville Union.'''' 

It will be perceived, first, that this Card, dated May 3, 1844, 
recognises the fact, that "Andrew Jackson" made this charge 
against Mr. Clay : " My attention has been called to various news- 
paper articles, referring to a letter said to have been written dv 
me to General Hamilton, recantiyig the charge," &c. Secondly, 
the card re-affirms the charge : " I formed my opinion from 
facts and circumstances that were indisputable and conclusive ; and 
I may add, that this opinion has undergone no change." 
Thirdly, General Jackson, in this card, by implication, denies 
that he has ever recanted, and challenges the proof: " I have no 

recollection I do not believe All they have to do, 

is to apply for it" — the proof. The charge, therefore, being re- 
affirmed by General Jackson, on the 3d of May, 1844, puts the 
whole matter again at issue, and compels to an examination of the 
subject, not less as a demand of public, than of private, justice. 

The charge, or charges, are briefly stated by Mr. Clay, in his 
address to the public, of June 29, 1827, as he understood them 
to be conveyed in General Jackson's letter to Mr. Carter Bever- 
ley, of June 6, 1827, as follows: — 

" First, that my friends in Congress, early in January, 1825, 
proposed to him [Gen. Jackson], that, if he would say, or permit 
any of his confidential friends to say, that, in case he was elected 
president, Mr. Adams should not be continued secretary of state, 
by a complete union of myself and my friends, we wou-ld put an 
end to the presidential contest in one hour. Secondly, that the 
above proposal was made to General Jackson through a distin- 
guished member of Congress, of high standing, with my privity 
and consent." 

In another part of this address, Mr. Clay says : " General Jack- 
son, having at last voluntarily placed himself in the attitude of my 
public accuser, we are now fairly at issue. I rejoice, that a spe- 
cific accusation, by a responsible accuser, has at length appeared, 
though at the distance of near two years and a half since the charge j 
was first brought forth by Mr. George Kremer. It will be univer- 
sally admitted, that the accusation is of the most serious nature 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 311 

Hardly any more atrocious charge could be preferred against the 
representative of the people in his official character. The charge 
in substance, is, that deliberate jpropositions of bargain were made 
by my congressional friends collectively, through an authorized 
and distinguished member of Congress, to General Jackson ; that 
their object was, by these means of bargain and corruption, to 
exclude Mr. Adams from the department of state, or to secure my 
promotion to office ; and that I was privy and assented to those 
propositions, and to the employment of those means. 

" Such being the accusation, and the prosecutor, and the issue 
between us, I have now a right to expect that he will substantiate 
his charges by the exhibition of satisfactory evidence. In that 
event, there is no punishment that would exceed the measure of 
my offence. In the opposite event, what ought to be the judg- 
ment of the American people, is cheerfully submitted to their wis- 
dom and justice." 

It will be seen, therefore, that this card of General Jackson, 
of May 3, 1844, published by him in the Nashville Union, virtu- 
ally denying that he had recanted, and virtually re-affirming the 
original charge, leaves it precisely where it was when he appeared 
as the public accuser of Mr. Clay in 1827, and precisely where it 
was when it was first brought forward by George Kremer in 1825. 
It is an ISSUE still pending, to be examined by common rules of 
evidence, and submitted to the public of the present and future 
generations. Private and public justice are equally concerned in 
the investigation, and it is impossible to waive it. 

With this preliminary statement of the case, as it now stands, 
it is proper to return to the origin. 

On the 8th of January, 1824, the Hon. J. Q. Adams, then sec- 
retary of state, under Mr. Monroe, made a party, in honor of 
General Andrew Jackson, as the hero of New Orleans, and in com- 
memoration of the victory which he achieved before that city over 
the British forces, on the 8th of January, 1815. The party was 
a brilliant one, attended by the president of the United States, the 
foreign ambassadors, members of Congress, public functionaries in 
the various departments of the government, and a host of distin- 
guished strangers. General Jackson, then a senator of the United 
States from Tennessee, was, of course, the star of the evening, 
" the observed of all observers," with Mrs. Adams on his arm, 
who, with grace and dignity, did the honors of hostess, in present- 
ing the general to her various and numerous guests. General 
Jackson, certainly, was not unknown before ; but this occasion 

Vol. I.— 19 



312 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

lifted him, from the comparatively vulgar place of a meteor, in the 
atmosphere of earth, to the position of a fixed orb in the firmament 
above. From that moment, he began to be thought of as a candi- 
date for the presidency of the United States. His first formal 
nomination was made by the legislature of Tennessee, which was 
quickly followed in other parts of the Union. He was now fairly 
in the field, with John Quincy Adams, William H. Crawford, and 
Henry Clay, as competitors. The result of that election, was, 
that, out of 261 electoral votes given (one failed by sickness) Mr. 
Adams received 84, Mr. Crawford 41, General Jackson 99, and 
Mr. Clay 37. 

Inasmuch as a claim was set up for General Jackson, as the 
more popular candidate, and entitled to the presidency, on the 
ground of his plurality of 99, it is proper to consider the validity 
of that claim. In the first place, the principle of the claim, prop- 
erly applied — as it doubtless should be, if urged — would destroy 
the claim for General Jackson, and transfer it to Mr. Adams. 
" It is a poor rule that will not work both ways." If the principle 
of plurality is adopted, it should prevail, not only for one stage of an 
election, but for all its stages. To be applied in one, and rejected 
in the others, would be the greatest injustice. If insisted on, when 
the election, having failed in the states, passes to the house of 
representatives of the United States, it should be credited in the 
past, as well as in the present. Indeed, the true state of the pres- 
ent could not be determined, without a consideration of the past 
Although General Jackson had a plurality in the nominal returns 
from the electoral colleges, the question is, whether he had a plu- 
rality in the popular votes of the states ? In North Carolina, the 
Crawford men had a great plurality over either of the Jackson and 
Adams sections ; but the two latter, joining their forces, gave the 
electoral vote of the state, it being fifteen, to General Jackson. 
Deduct this from General Jackson's plurality — as it should be, if 
the principle of plurality is to govern — and it leaves him 84, the 
same as the vote for Mr. Adams. But Mr. Adams had a great 
plurality of the popular vote of New York, and on this principle 
should be credited the entire vote of that state, 36, whereas he 
received only 26. This adjustment would carry Mr. Adams up 
to 94, and leave General Jackson with 84. Besides, the popular 
majorities for Mr. Adams in the six New England states, were 
greatly in excess of the Jackson majorities of the tight states, 
which gave their vote for him, which greatly augments Mr Adams 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 313 

aggregate plurality in the Union, over General Jackson's. Then 
deduct the constitutional allowance for the slave vote in tlie slave 
states, as given by their masters. It will not be pretended, that 
this is a popula?- vote, though constitutional. General Jackson 
obtained fifty-jive electoral votes, more than half his entire vote, 
and Mr. Adams only six, from slave states. It will therefore be 
seen, that, on the principle of a popular plurality, carried out, and 
carried through — (it ought not to stop for the advantage of one 
party, if admitted) — Mr. Adams, in the election of 1824, was far 
ahead of General Jackson. 

But this claim of plurality is not only unconstitutional, in this 
case, but anti-republican and anti-democratic, in all cases. Ad- 
mitting, that General Jackson's electoral vote of 1824, fairly rep- 
resented the popular vote — which, as shown above, was not the 
fact — there was yet, in the returns to Congress, the great majority 
of 162 electoral votes against General Jackson's 99. Is there any 
principle of democracy, or of the fundamental law of the American 
Union, that would require the states and the people, who returned 
these 162 electoral votes to Congress, to give up their will to the 
comparatively few states and few people, who returned the 99 
votes ? The demand was preposterous. The election, having 
failed of a majority for any one candidate, by the action of the 
people, was transferred by the constitution to the house of repre- 
sentatives, to be decided by a majority of states, each state count- 
ing one, and its vote to be determined by the majority of its own 
delegation in that body. It was still under control of the majority 
principle — not indeed of a popular majoritj' — for the people having 
failed, the constitution gave it over to the states, acting in their 
federal capacity, which erected new parties in the franchise, not on 
the basis of popular representation, but on the platform of the fed- 
eral compact, each state, large or small, having an equal voice. 
They were required to vote in the capacity of states, thirteen 
of which — there being twenty-four — constituted a majority. 

Although there was no legal or constitutional ground of com- 
plaint, that Mc. Clay was excluded from the house of representa- 
tives, by the result of this election, it was nevertheless true, that he 
was entitled to the vote of Louisiana, and would have had it, but 
for the fact, that the choice of the electors of president, by the 
legislature, was unfairly brought on, in the absence of some two 
or three of Mr. Clay's friends. The electoral votes of Louisiana, 
being^i'e, fairly given, would have carried Mr. Clay into the house 



314: THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

of representatives, over Mr. Crawford, by a plurality of one. Mr. 
Clay was also entitled to share the electoral vote of New lork, 
with Mr. Adams, equally or nearly so, by an understanding be- 
tween two of the three parties in that state, which was broken up 
by a sudden movement of Mr. Van Buren, in a nomination for 
governor, disturbing and dissolving the arrangement. It is also 
to be remarked, that before the electoral votes of New York were 
cast, they had heard from Louisiana, and seeing that Mr. Clay's 
chances of being returned to the house of representatives, were 
slender, his friends among the electors went for Mr. Adams, as 
their second choice. Mr. Clay's full strength in the electoral col- 
leges, but for these occurrences — one of which was a fraud, one a 
trick, and the other an apparent necessity, resulting from the two 
former — would have given him a very considerable plurality over 
Mr. Crawford, which would not probably have been effaced, even 
if Mr. Crawford had received the vote of North Carolina, to which 
he was entitled on the plurality principle, but which was given to 
General Jackson. It has never been doubted by anybody, that, 
if Mr. Clay had been returned to the house of representatives, in 
the election of 1824, he would have been chosen president of the 
United States. The probable consequences of such ?n event, will 
naturally occur to all minds. It would doubtless have been preg- 
nant with great and important results, affecting the destiny of the 
country for ages — for ever. 

But it was not easy for the Jackson party, which had sprung 
into existence so suddenly (it was entirely a new party), and which 
partook of the vehement temper of their leader, to be reconciled 
to any doubt as to the election of their candidate, in the house of 
representatives. Mr. Crawford, though returned, was generally 
considered out of the question, on account of his impaired state 
of health. By common consent, Mr. Adams or General Jackson 
was to be president. The Jackson men looked at the figures 99, 
and could plainly see, that they counted more than 84. Whether 
the conclusion they were pleased to deduce from these given arith- 
metical quantities, was a just one, is another matter. It is clear, 
that General Jackson had 99 votes, and Mr. Adams only 84. The 
supporters of the former were anxious, impatient, not to say, furi- 
ous. They had enlisted under a chieftain of imperious, indomita- 
ble will, whose principal, almost only capital, was a glorious battle, 
the just fame of which, acquired by himself as victor, no one could 
gainsay. He had marched at the head of his political legions, re- 



a 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 316 

cently mustered, with scarcely less energy and determination, than 
he evinced at the head of the American troops, on the 8th of Jan- 
uary, 1815, in the face of the British foe. It was as a military 
man they followed him ; for he had no other reputation of suffi- 
cient consequence to make a party. 

The advent of General Jackson, as a candidate for the presi- 
dency, was not more unexpected, than his success in the first cam- 
paign. Against three competitors, each of them a distinguished 
statesman, of long standing in the civil service, he was returned to 
the house of representatives, as already noticed, with a pluraHty 
over all. Flushed with a feeling natural to such an unexampled 
career, he and his partisans were prepared to assert strong claims. 
They set up the figures 99 against the figures 84, as the principle 
and the rule. Who could say the former did not count more than 
the latter? Nevertheless, there were other principles and other 
rules, in other men's minds. It was at least thought, that the 
house of representatives was not bound by the figures 99 against 
162. 

Mr. Clay's position, in these circumstances, was one of peculiar 
delicacy. He had been a competitor in the field ; had failed to be 
returned to the house ; and, of course, had lost his chances for this 
time. But none could deny, that he was a statesman, presenting 
high and strong claims as a future candidate for the presidency. 
It was not his fault, but altogether to his credit, that the use of his 
extraordinary endowments, had earned for him such high consid- 
eration. He was then occupying the speaker's chair of the house 
of representatives, which he had filled since 1811, except for one 
Congress, when he was forced to be absent for private reasons ; 
and none could fail to see, that the friends of the rival candidates 
for the presidency, must naturally have looked, with anxious con- 
cern, to the tendency of his preference, though he should not say 
a word, nor use an item of active influence, for one or another. 
Even the knowledge of his preference, was unavoidable influence. 
It was supposed, that he heM in his hands the power to elect 
either, though it was a mistake. That the friends of the candidates 
returned, should address him on this subject, directly or indi- 
rectly, was natural enough, and perhaps proper, if done with a 
discreet regard to the delicacy of his position. The following 
extract from Mr. Clay's address to his constituents, after the 
election, will throw some light on the practical operation of tliis 
feeling : — 



316 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

" During the month of December, and the greater part of Jan- 
uary, strong professions of high consideration, and of unbounded 
admiration of me, were made to my friends, in the greatest profu- 
sion, by some of the active friends of all the returned candidates. 
Everybody professed to regret, after I was excluded from the 
house, that I had not been returned to it. I seemed to be the 
favorite of everybody. Describing my situation to a distant friend, 
I said to him : ' I am enjoying, while alive, the posthumous hon- 
ors which are usually awarded to the venerated dead.' A person 
not acquainted with human nature would have been surprised, in 
listening to these praises, that the object of them had not been 
elected by general acclamation. None made more or warmer 
manifestations of these sentiments of esteem and admiration, than 
some of the friends of General Jackson. None were so reserved 
as those of Mr. Adams ; under an opinion (as I have learned since 
the election), which they early imbibed, that the western vote would 
be only influenced by its own sense of public duty ; and that, if 
its judgment pointed to any other than Mr, Adams, nothing which 
they could do would secure it to him. These professions and 
manifestations were taken by me for what they were worth. I 
knew that the sunbeams would quickly disappear, after my opinion 
should be ascertained, and that they would be succeeded by a 
storm ; although I did not foresee exactly how it would burst upon 
my poor head. I found myself transformed from a candidate be- 
fore the people, into an elector for the people. I deliberately ex- 
amined the duties incident to this new attitude, and weighed all the 
facts before me, upon which my judgment was to be formed or 
reviewed. If the eagerness of any of the heated partisans of the 
respective candidates suggested a tardiness in the declaration of my 
intention, I believed that the new relation in which I was placed 
to the subject, imposed on me an obligation to pay some respect 
to delicacy and decorum. 

" Meanwhile, that very reserve supplied aliment to newspaper 
criticism. The critics could not comprehend how a man, standing 
as I had stood toward the other gentlemen, should be restrained, 
by a sense of propriety, from instantly fighting under the banners 
of one of them, against the others. Letters were issued from the 
manufactory at Washington, to come back, after performing long 
journeys, for Washington consumption. These letters imputed 
to ' Mr, Clay and his friends a mysterious air, a portentous silence,' 
and so forth. From dark and distant hints, the progress was easy 
to open and bitter denunciation. Anonymous letters, full of menace 
and abuse, were almost daily poured in on me. Personal threats 
were communicated to me, through friendly organs, and I was 
kindly apprized of all the glories of village effigies which awaited 
me. A systematic attack was simultaneously commenced upon 
me from Boston to Charleston, with an object, present and future, 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 317 

which it was impossible to mistake. No man but myself could 
know the nature, extent, and variety, of means which were em- 
ployed to awe and influence me. I bore them, I trust, as your 
representative ought to have borne them, and as became me." 

Admitting these facts, as narrated by Mr. Clay — which will not 
be denied, because they are susceptible of proof — the character 
of the spirit that was roused on this occasion, as the time for the 
choice of a president in the house of representatives, was drawing 
near, is sufficiently manifest. The bounds of propriety had cer- 
tainly been transcended, in the employment of such means of in- 
fluence over Mr. Clay. But the atrocity of the last resort, which 
is now to be considered, would have been much more becoming a 
band of conspirators, in the most corrupt period of the Roman 
empire, than the leaders of a party in a modern civilized and 
Christian commonwealth. On the 28th of January, 1S25, twelve 
days previous to the time of election of president in the house of 
representatives, the following letter, stated to be from a member 
of Congress, but without the proper signature, was published in 
the Columbian Observer, at Philadelphia : — 

"Washington, Jmi. 25, 1825. 
"Dear Sir: I take up my pen to inform you of one of the 
most disgraceful transactions that ever covered with infamy the re- 
publican ranks. Would you beheve, that men, professing democ- 
racy, could be found base enough, to lay the axe at the very root 
of the tree of liberty ! Yet, strange as it is, it is not less true. 
To give you a full history of this transaction would far exceed the 
limits of a letter. I shall, therefore, at once proceed to give you 
a brief account of such a bargain, as can only be equalled by the 
famous Burr covyspiracy of 1801. For some time past, the friends 
of Clay have hinted, that they, like the Swiss, would fight for those 
who pay best. Overtures were said to have been made, by the 
friends of Adams, to the friends of Clay, offering him the appoint- 
ment of secretary of state, for his aid to elect Adams. And the 
friends of Clay gave the information to the friends of Jackson, and 
hinted, that if the friends of Jackson would offer the same price, 
they would close with them. But none of the friends of Jackson 
would descend to such mean barter and sale. It was not believed 
by any of the friends of Jackson, that this contract would be rati- 
fied, by the members from the states which had voted for Clay. I 
was of opinion, when I first heard of this transaction, that men, 
professing any honorable principles, could not, nor would not, be 
transferred, like the planter does his negroes, or the farmer does 
his team of horses. No alarm was excited. We believed the re- 



318 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

public was safe. The nation having delivered Jackson into the 
hands of Congress, backed by a large majority of their votes, there 
was on my mind no doubt, that Congress would respond to the will 
of the nation, by electing the individual they had declared to be 
their choice. Contrary to this expectation, it is now ascertained 
to a certainty, that Henry Clay has transferred his interest to John 
Quincy Adams. As a consideration for this abandonment of duty 
to his constituents, it is said and believed, should this unholy coa- 
lition prevail. Clay is to be appointed secretary of state. I have 
no fear on my mind. I am clearly of opinion, we shall defeat 
every combination. The force of public opinion must prevail, or 
there is an end of liberty." 

It is unnecessary, at this late day, after this foul conspiracy has 
accomplished all its mischief, and when no sensible person, of any 
party, having the least claim to respectability, yields the slightest 
credence to the atrocious statements and infamous suggestions of 
this letter, to treat it as worthy of refutation or reply. It is cited 
here as the nucleus of a concerted scheme, which was sustained 
for years, with too much effectiveness, to blast the reputation of a 
great and pure patriot, for the political advancement of a rival. 
No one will pretend, that it was the conception of him who was 
made to father it. He himself said, he did not write it. He was 
at least the copyist, and was doubtless the forwarder. It is not 
unlikely, that it was expressed in his own terms, and that, being 
told by those in whom he confided, he believed what he wrote; for 
he was a credulous and simple-minded man. 

This letter was not written for the latitude and meridian of the 
city of Washington, for home consumption there ; but to be thrown 
broadcast over the land, to poison the general mind, to find a lodg- 
ment where such things would be likely to be entertained, to act as 
a leaven in the political kneading-trough — as seed in a susceptible 
soil, to take deep root, and spring up, and extend its branches, 
and distil its upas venom everywhere. Once thrown out, it was 
impossible to arrest it, or prevent its mischief. But it had not 
the slightest credit in Washington, even with the party, in whose 
bosom it was conceived, and by whose agency it was put forth. 
Doubtless it aimed to frighten Mr. Clay, if possible, into the sup- 
port of General Jackson, as his only way of escape ; and that is 
one of its most atrocious features. But if that should fail, it was 
indeed a terrible engine for future operations. In the annals of 
political warfare, a more diabolical scheme was probably never 
conceived. 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 319 

"Intimidation!" says Mr. Clay, in his address to the pubHc, 
from Washington, December, 1827, alluding to this transaction — 
"intimidation! of a representative of the people, in the discharge 
of a solemn trust! That is the last day of the republic, on which 
such means shall be successfully employed and publicly sanc- 
tioned. Finding me immoveable by flattery or fear, the last resort 
has been to crush me by steady and unprecedented calumny. 
Whether this foul aim shall be crowned with success, or not, de- 
pends upon the intelligence of the American people. I make no 
appeal to their sympathy. I invoke only stern justice. If truth 
has not lost its force, reason its sway, and the fountains of justice 
their purity, the decision must be auspicious. With a firm reli- 
ance upon the enlightened judgment of the public, and conscious 
of the zeal and uprightness, with which I have executed every 
trust committed to my care, I await the event without alarm, or 
apprehension. Whatever it may be, my anxious hopes will con- 
tinue for the success of the great cause of human liberty, and of 
those high interests of national policy, to the promotion of which, 
the best exertions of my life have been faithfully dedicated. And 
my humble, but earnest prayers, will be unremitted, that all danger 
maybe averted from our common country; and especially, that 
OUR Union, our liberty, and our institutions, may long 
survive, a cheering exception from the operation of that fatal de- 
cree, which the voice of all history has hitherto uniformly pro- 
claimed." 

This, as will be perceived by the date, was penned when the cal- 
umny was nearly three years old, and when it was revived for the 
presidential election of 1828. It is introduced here for the pur- 
pose of characterizing one important feature of the conspiracy — 
"intimidation." 

On the first of February, 1825, the following card appeared in 
the National Intelligencer: — 

"A CARD. 

"I have seen, without any other emotion than that of ineffa- 
ble contempt, the abuse which has been poured upon me, by a 
scurrilous paper issued in this city, and by other kindred prints 
and persons, in regard to the presidential election. The editor of 
one of these prints, ushered forth in Philadelphia, called the ' Co- 
lumbian Observer,^ for which I do not subscribe, and which I have 
never ordered, has had the impudence to transmit to me his vile 
paper of the 28th instant. In that number is inserted a letter, pur- 
porting to have been written from this city, on the 25th instant, by 
a member of the house of representatives, belonging to the Penn- 
sylvania delegation. I believe it to be a forgery ; but if it be gen- 
uine, I pronounce the member, whoever he may be, a base and 



320 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

infamous calumniator, a dastard, and liar; and if he dare unveil 
himself, and avow his name, I will hold him responsible, as I here 
admit myself to be, to all the laws which govern and regulate men 
of honor. "H. Clay. 

''31st January, 1825." 

In Mr. Clay's address to his constituents on this subject, a few 
weeks afterward, he says, in reference to this card : — 

" When I saw that letter, alleged to be written by a member of 
the very house over which I was presiding, who was so far desig- 
nated as to be described as belonging to a particular delegation by 
name, a member with whom I might be daiiy exchanging, at least 
on my part, friendly salutations, and who was possittly receiving 
from me constantly acts of courtesy and kindness, I felt that I 
could no longer remcyn silent. A crisis appeared to me to have 
arisen in my public life. I issued my card. I ought not to have 
put in it the last paragraph, because, although it does not necessa- 
rily imply the resort to a personal combat, it admits of that con- 
struction ; nor will I conceal that such a possible issue was within 
my contemplation. I owe it to the community to say, that what- 
ever heretofore I may have done, or, by inevitable circumstances, 
might be forced to do, no man in it holds in deeper abhorrence 
than I do, that pernicious practice. Condemned as it must be by 
the judgment and philosophy, to say nothing of the religion, of 
every thinking man, it is an affair of feeling about which we can 
not, although we should, reason. Its true corrective will be found 
when all sharll unite, as all ought to unite, in its unqualified pro- 
scription." 

Mr. Clay, in this matter, must be judged by the circumstances 
in which he was placed. If ever a provocation justified strong 
language, or might be pleaded in extenuation of excess of feeling, 
this, doubdess, was of that character. There is no person, who 
will not sympathize profoundly with his position on that occasion. 
Two days afterward, the following card appeared in the Intelli- 
gencer : — 

"ANOTHER CARD. 

" George Kremer, of the house of representatives, tenders 
nis respects to the Honorable ' H. Clay,' and informs him, that, 
by reference to the editor of the ' Columbian Observer,^ he may 
ascertain the name of the writer of a letter of tlie 25th ult., which, 
it seems, has afforded so much concern to ' H. Clay.' In the 
meantime, George Kremer holds himself ready to prove, to 
the satisfaction of unprejudiced minds, enough to satisfy them of 
the accuracy of the statements, which are contained in that letter, 
to the extent that they concern the course and conduct of ' H. 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 321 

Clay.' Being a representative of the people, he will not fear to 
' cry aloud and spare not,' when their rights and privileges are at 
stake." 

Now that Mr. Kremer is on the stage, in so important a position, 
it may be useful to place his character in its true light. Mr. Clay 
has generously given him credit for " native honesty," and ap- 
pears never to have entertained any personal illwill toward him. 
He regarded him solely in the light of a dupe. Mr. Kremer told 
Mr. Crowningshield, member from Massachusetts, and formerly 
secretary of the navy, that he was not the author of the letter to 
the Columbian Observer. He seems manifestly never to have un- 
derstood it, as will appear by the certificates below from the Hon. 
Mr. Brent, member of Congress at that time from Louisiana, and 
friend of Mr. Clay ; from the Hon. Mr. Little, of Maryland, also 
a member, and friend of General Jackson ; and Mr. Digges, a 
citizen of Washington ; who were all witnesses of the remarks to 
which they severally certify.* 

During the same debate, a paper, containing an explanation 
tantamount to these certificates, was submitted to Mr. Clay, as one 
that Mr. Kremer proposed to sign, if that would be satisfactory ; 
but Mr. Clay replied, that the business was now in the hands of 
the house, and beyond his control. It was understood, that Mr. 
Ingham, of Pennsylvania, got hold of this paper, put it in his 
pocket, and advised Mr. Kremer to take no step without the ap- 
probation of his friends. It is equally evident, that Mr. Kremer 
neither wrote his card, nor clearly understood it. It is sufficient 

•"I state, without hesitation, that, on the day on which the debate took place, 
in the house of representatives, on the proposition to refer Mr. Clay's communi- 
cation respecting ' Mr. Kremer's card,' to a committee, I heard Mr. Kremer declare 
at the fireplace, in the lobby of the house of representatives, in a manner and lan- 
guage, which I believed sincere, that he never intended to charge Mr. Clay with cor- 
ruption or dishonor, in his intended vote for Mr. Adams as president ; or that he had 
transferred, or could transfer, the votes or interests of his friends ; that lie (Mr. 
Kremer) was among the last men in the nation, to make such a charge against 
Mr. Clay ; and that his letter was never intended to convey the idea given to it. 
The substance of the above conversation I immediately communicated to Mr. 
Buchanan, and Mr. Hemphill, of Pennsylvania, and Mr. Dwight, of Massachu- 
setts, of the house of representatives. " Wm. Brent, of Louisiana. 

"February 25, 1825," 

" I was present, and heard the observation, as above stated, in a conversation 
between Mr. Brent and Mr. Kremer. " Peter Little, of Maryland." 

" In the National Journal, I perceive my name mentioned, as to a conversation 
which took place in the lobby of the house of representatives, between Mr. Brent, 
of Louisiana, and Mr. Kremer, and I feel no hesitation in saying, that Mr. 
Brent's statement, in the paper of this day, is substantially correct. 

" Wm. Dudley Digges. 

" March 1, 1825." 



322 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

to observe, that Mr. Eaton, the colleague of General Jackson in 
the senate, and General Jackson's biographer, was closeted for 
some time with Mr. Kremer the evening before his card was pub- 
lished. 

When Mr. Clay and Mr. Eaton afterward had some correspon- 
dence on this subject, the former said to the latter : " I did be- 
Heve, from your nocturnal interview with Mr. Kremer, referred to 
in my address, that you prepared or advised the publication of his 
card in the guarded terms in which it is expressed. I should be 
happy, by a disavowal on your part of the fact of that interview, 
or of its supposed object, to be able to declare — as in the event of 
such disavowal, 1 would take pleasure in declaring — that I have 
been mistaken in supposing, that you had an agency in the com- 
position and publication of that card." To which Mr. Eaton re- 
plied : " You will excuse me from making an attempt to remove 
any belief, which you entertain upon this subject. It is a matter 
which gives me no concern." Mr. Eaton also said : " Suppose 
the fact to be, that I did visit him ; and suppose, too, that it was, 
as you have termed it, ' a nocturnal visit ;' was there anything ex- 
isting, that should have denied me this privilege V Certainly not. 
So, when Mr. Eaton had a fair opportunity, was challenged, and 
had the strongest motive, he did not deny it. This answer can 
hardly be regarded other than as tantamount to a confession of the 
fact ; inasmuch as the denial would have taken advantage from 
Mr. Clay, and given it to Mr. Eaton. 

The card was artfully worded, to separate Mr. Clay from his 
friends, and only proposed to prove the charges of the letter so 
far as they concerned Mr. Clay. The election was still pending, 
and it was equally important to abstain from imputations on Mr. 
Clay's friends, as it was politic to fix them on him. 

The moment Mr. Clay saw who his accuser was, by the pub- 
lication of his card, he perceived, that his real enemies were still 
under cover, and meant to stay there. To hold Mr. Kremer per- 
sonally responsible, as he afterward told his constituents, " he 
would have exposed himself to universal ridicule." There was 
no alternative left him, but to appeal to the house of representa- 
tives, and to demand an investigation. To prevent the evil al- 
ready done, was impossible ; but he could bare his breast to his 
foes, and say : " Here I am. Do what you will, or can." 

The same day on which Mr. Kremer published his card, Mr 
Clay rose in the house, and delivered the following speech : — 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 323 

" The speaker [Mr. Clay] rose from his place, and requested 
the indulgence of the house for a hw moments, while he asked 
its attention to a subject, in which he felt himself deeply concerned. 
A note had appeared this morning in the National Intelligencer, 
under the name, and with the authority, as he presumed, of a 
member of this house from Pennsylvania, which adopted, as his 
own, a previous letter, published in another print, containing seri- 
ous and injurious imputations against him, and which the author 
avowed his readiness to substantiate by proof. These charges im- 
plicated his conduct, in regard to the pending presidential election. 
The respectability of the station which the member holds, who thus 
openly prefers them, and that of the people whom he represents, 
entitled them to grave attention. It might be, indeed, worthy of 
consideration, whether the character and dignity of the house 
itself, did not require a full investigation of them, and an impar- 
tial decision on their truth. For, if they were true, if he were 
capable, and base enough to betray the solemn trust, which the 
constitution had confided to him ; if, yielding to personal views 
and considerations, he could compromit the highest interests of 
his country, the house would be scandalized by his continuing to 
occupy the chair, with which he had been so long honored in pre- 
siding at its deliberations, and he merited instantaneous expulsion. 
Without, however, presuming to indicate what the house might 
conceive it ought to do, on account of its own purity and honor, 
he hoped, that he should be allowed respectfully to solicit, in be- 
half of himself, an inquiry into the truth of the charges to which 
he referred. Standing in the relations to the house, which both 
the member from Pennsylvania and himself did, it appeared to 
him, that here was the proper place to institute the inquiry, in or- 
der that, if guilty, here the proper punishment might be appHed ; 
and if innocent, here his character and conduct might be vindi- 
cated. He anxiously hoped, therefore, that the house would be 
pleased to order an investigation to be made into the truth of the 
charges. Emanating from such a source as they did, this was the 
only notice which he could take of them. If the house should 
think proper to raise a committee, he trusted that some other than 
the ordinary mode pursued by the practice and rules of the house, 
would be adopted to appoint the committee." 

It will be obvious, that none but an innocent man would have 
taken this course, without advice, without consultation, promptly 
on the instant. For, if guilty, he was lost. If guilty, by this 
act he put himself altogether in the power of his accusers. Even 
if they had found, in the casual conversations of such an election- 
eering strife (it would be remarkable if they had not, though no 
impropriety had been committed), only the slender materials neces- 



324 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

sary to make out a plausible case before a credulous public, espe- 
cially their own party, this appeal of Mr. Clay to the house was 
the very thing for them. If there had been the slightest ground 
for the charges of Mr. Kremer's letter, the facts were recent, with- 
in a few days ; they were all on the spot, and could be obtained 
in an hour ; they were on the floor of the house, at the moment 
this appeal was made. In this appeal, Mr. Clay anticipated the 
judgment of his peers, in case he should be found guilty, and 
pronounced his own sentence : " The house would be scandalized 
by his continuing to occupy the chair, and he merited iristanta- 
neoiis expulsion^ Was not this enough for them ? What could 
they desire more ? 

But an investigation of this affair by that house, and a decision 
thereupon corresponding with the evidence, publicly pronounced 
— though it was the very course which the accusers, as honest and 
true men, would have desired — though it was the only course 
which could, in such circumstances, purge that body from a pub- 
lic scandal — was that, which, most of all, the accusers dreaded, 
and which they would seek, by all possible means, to avoid. 
There was not a member upon the floor, nor a man in Washing- 
ton, that gave the least credit to any one of the charges, nor was 
there any available evidence there, to impart to one of them the 
slightest shadow of support. Notwithstanding Mr. Kremer had 
been made the instrument of the publication of the charges, it has 
been seen, by the evidence of Messrs. Brent, Little, and Digges, 
that even he did not believe them, in the sense ascribed to them, 
and that " he was one of the last men in the nation to make such 
a charge against Mr. Clay." 

No : this infamous story had been fabricated to go forth upon 
the country, as capital for future uses. It was already known 
what would probably be the result of the pending election in the 
house. It was known, too, that it was universally regarded as 
suitable, that Mr. Clay should be secretary of state ; that all the 
west, of all parties, would demand it ; and that he could not de- 
cline, without doing violence to his relations, and to his obligations 
of duty. Foreseeing these inevitable results, it was only necessa- 
ry to PREDICT them, in the shape of an accusation of crime, of 
bargain, and for all popular purposes, among the less informed 
and more susceptible masses, over the wide country, for all time 
that might be necessary for the objects of this diabolical conspira- 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 325 

cy, ths FULFILMENT would be the proof! An identical propo- 
sition is employed to establish a most flagitious crime ! 

Of what avail was it, that Mr. Clay demanded an investigation, 
though justice cried aloud in his behalf, and though it was neces- 
sary to purify the house, by his degradation and expulsion, or by 
his acquittal ? It was known, that he could but be acquitted, and 
that the blow would fall back on the strikers ; that the infamy 
would attach to those, who had begun to blow its breath upon an- 
other, and who had resolved to stir that breath into a storm on the 
head of their victim. 

Mr. Forsyth, of Georgia, though a political opponent of Mr. 
Clay, but always a gentleman of probity and honor, felt the justice 
of the speaker's appeal — as indeed the whole house did — and rose 
in his place, and moved, what was afterward modified and passed, 
as follows : — 

" Resolved, That the communication made by the speaker to 
the house, and entered on the journal of the house, be referred to 
a select committee." 

After a debate of a day and a half, the committee was raised by 
a vote of 125 to 69, and consisted of the following members : 
Messrs. P. P. Barbour, Webster, McLane, Taylor, Forsyth, 
Saunders, and Rankin, all political opponents of Mr. Clay in the 
election of 1824. 

Immediately as Mr. Forsyth sat down, Mr. Kremer, supposing 
he had a duty to perform, and not having received instructions for 
this new posture of affairs, was the first to rise, and said : *' If, 
upon investigation being instituted, it should appear, that he had 
not suflScient reason to justify the statements he had made, he 
trusted he should receive the marked reprobation, which had been 
suggested by the speaker. Let it fall where it might, he was wil- 
ling to meet the inquiry, and abide the result." This poor man, 
as has been seen, knew better how to do as he was bid, than how 
to act in a new emergency. He had been told, that it was all just 
so, and he believed it, so far as he understood it. It is not sur- 
prising, therefore, that he should adhere to it, till better informed, 
or otherwise advised. His position at this moment added not a 
little to the general excitement, as well with those who saw he was 
ruining their plot, as with those who perceived its atrocity. Mr. 
Kremer, as the organ, the tool, of a band of conspirators, had 
snatched up the glove which Mr. Clay had thrown down in his 
appeal to the house, before his masters had time to put him in 



326 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

check. But the protracted debate afforded time to modify the 
plot, as circumstances might require, in the progress of an inves- 
tigation, which now seemed unavoidable, from the general sympa- 
thy of the house for a presiding officer, whom they had always 
respected, whose honor was unsullied, and who was now the sub- 
ject, as no one doubted, of one of the grossest outrages ever com- 
mitted in civilized society. 

The effect of the debate on the resolution now under considera- 
tion, was to call forth the feeling of the house, in these novel and 
peculiar circumstances. It was impossible not to observe the 
mustering, under the rival categories of the corrupt and the uncor- 
rupt — of those who were steeped in the iniquity of this foul scheme, 
and those who were shocked, not less by its audacity, than by its 
malignity, and who were resolved to vindicate the honor of that 
august body to which they belonged. The extracts, in the note* 

• Mr. Forsyth, who moved the resolution, said : — 

" If the charge is a true one, has not the bargain been made ? And if it has, is 
it not corruption ? And what then ? It ought to be punished. Has not this 
house power, not merely to reprimand, but to expel any one of its members, who 
shall have dared to be guilty of such conduct ? If, on the contrary, it shall ap- 
pear, that any member of this house, governed by mere rumors, and under the in- 
fluence of jealousy or mere surmises, shall have presumed to hold up, as an infa- 
mous bargainer, as a contractor for votes and influence, a member or an officer 
of this house, will it be contended, that we have no power to punish him ? Cer- 
tainly we have the power to reprimand, and if that is insufficient, we have the 
power to expel him, as unworthy a seat in this house. If this is denied, what is a 
member to do, who is publicly charged with an offence of this nature, or where is 
he to go ? This is the proper, and the only place, where his reputation can be vin- 
dicated. This house alone is competent to examine into the charges. There can 
be no doubt, as to the power of the house. An abused or calumniated member 
must throw himself on the judgment ol his peers, that, if falsely accused, the 
guilt of the calumny may revert on its author. Suppose a person has a large claim 
pending before this house, and he knows that a certain member, from his ability, 
from his unblemished reputation for integrity, from his long acquaintance with 
the rules of business, and from general knowledge of the members, is possessed 
of great influence over their minds ; and that claimant ofi"ers this member a bribe, 
which the member accepts, and circumstances afterward transpire to bring the 
transaction to light, between the time of accepting the bribe, and tlie time of de- 
ciding on the claim ; will any gentleman tell me, that we may not punish such a 
transaction ? Will any gentleman tell me, that we must wait till the crime is 
consummated — till the vote is given ? The charge, in this case, is, that a mem- 
ber of this house intends to give his influence and vote in favor of a certain can- 
didate for the presidency, and on that consideration is to receive a place of profit 
and honor. Is there any distinction between the two cases ? Is not this bribery 
to all intents and purposes? If the charge is made, it ought to be investigated. 
If it is true, the member charged, ought to be expelled from this house. If it is 
not true, the slanderer ought to be punished." 

Mr. Wright, of Ohio, said : — 

" The presiding officer of this house is directly and positively charged, by a 
member in his place, with entering into a corrupt contract, by which, for the con- 
sideration of an office, dependent on success, he stipulates to transfer his own 
vote, and those of the members from the states which had voted for him for the 
presidency, to one of the three candidates presented to us to choose a president 
from. If it be not a positive charge, I have no conception what idea scntlemen 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY-. 327 

below, are honorable examples of the feeling expressed on one 
side, and may be taken as a specimen of the virtue of those who 
voted with them. 

Such, as seen below, were the feelings of those, who, it can not 

attach to a positive charge. We are told, sir, with this charge before us, that no 
ofience is imputed, that all rests on rumors ; nothing affecting, in the slightest de- 
gree, the dignity of the house ! — that your presiding officer, corruptly selling his 
own vote, and those of his fellow members, is no offence to the dignity of the 
house ! — that no ulterior measures can grow out of such a charge, if true ! — and 
that it is beneath our dignity to notice such vague rumors ! Sir, will you go to 
the election of a chief magistrate, while corruption fills your halls, and seeks to 
find its way into your ballot-boxes ? No, sir. Let us go to that work with pure 
hands, and drive these corrupt bargainers from our presence. Let us investigate 
these charges ; and if they are found true, I have no hesitation in saying, your 
speaker is unworthy the station he fills, or a seat on this floor ; and I, for one, 
will vote for his expulsion, as I would the member that should falsely make the 
charge." 

Mr. Storrs, of New York, said : — 

" He would not express an opinion on the matter now before the house, so far as 
any one might be concerned as an individual ; for it had now assumed a charac- 
ter, which involved the honor and purity of the house. It is no less a question, 
than, whether we shall vindicate the house itself from the imputation of direct 
bribery ? If the character of its presiding officer is concerned, and, if that 
seat is even suspected to have been tarnished with dishonor, and we deny the 
most rigid inquiry, the public confidence in us will be forfeited. What is the true 
character of the matter, to which it is now proposed to extend the interposition of 
the house ? It was stated, in a public print, that a base and corrupt bargain had 
been made for the transfer of the votes of certain members of this body, to one of 
the persons from whom the selection for the next president must constitutionally 
be made. It is not alleged to have been done out of doors. The publication ex- 
pressly charges, that this corruption exists within these walls ! No essential part 
of this letter, except the last paragraph, is stated to be founded on hearsay, or ru- 
mor. It boldly announces to the nation, that, however strange, base, or disgrace- 
ful, the transaction may be, it is nevertheless true ! This paper was laid before 
the house by the member [the speaker] whose name was thus publicly given as 
the party to this foul bribery; and a member from Pennsylvania, rose in his 
place, and avowed substantially to the house, his readiness to meet the inquiry 
which was asked, and to prove the truth of the charges. After such an avowal, 
in the presence of the house and from a member of the house, Mr. Storrs said, 
that he felt bound to proceed, and vindicate the house from the charge, or punish 
the guilty partakers of this corrupt conspiracy. 

" Will any one [said Mr. Storrs] undertake to convince this house that, if its 
presiding officer should be convicted of theft (if I may suppose a case so offen- 
sive), we have not the power to dethrone him from the seat which he had thus 
dishonored ? If he is charged with bribery, and the mean barter and sale of his 
vote, as a member, is it an offence less involving the purity of the place ? If the 
charge were proved, is there one among us, who would not feel degraded in the 
occupation of these seats ? Sir, the place of a representative here, i« one of the 
most transcendent trusts in the gift of the free people of these states. The charge 
preferred against our presiding officer, strikes at the foundation of all public con- 
fidence in the purity of this house. If, sir, these charges can be proved, I would 
not sit here for a moment, if I thought we must patiently bear the humiliation of 
such a place. It becomes us, in my judgment, to act firmly and promptly — to 
bring, if necessary, every member of the house to the scrutiny. If the honor of 
our speaker is implicated by the inquiry, it is our solemn duty to purify the house 
of the dishonor. If calumniated, we not only vindicate him, but ourselves. The 
charge is too palpably made, to be evaded. The proof is offered, and if we now 
deny the inquiry, the nation itself will inquire, and pass their judgment on him aiul 
«i. without proof. If the speaker were my own kin, and were convicted, not of 
crime, but even of dishonor, I would proceed to the last resort." 

Vol. I.— 20 



328 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

be doubted, rightly appreciated the nature of this occasion. The 
speaker of the house had made his appeal, and such was the re- 
sponse of 125 of its members against 69, who could not, or would 
not, sympathize with these sentiments — who were in favor of sup- 
pressing inquiry, and leaving their presiding officer under the stain 
of these detestable charges. But a committee of seven of the most 
eminent members of the house — not one of them, however, a po- 
litical friend of Mr. Clay — was appointed, and sent forth to their 
duty ; and the following is their report : — 

"February 9, 1825. — Mr. P. P. Barbour, from the select com- 
mittee, on the speaker's appeal, &c., reported : That, upon their 
first meeting, with a view to execute the duty imposed upon them 
by the house, they directed their chairman to address a letter to 
the Hon. George Kremer, informing him, that they would be 
ready, at a particular time, therein stated, to receive any evidence 
or explanation he might have to offer, touching the charges refer- 
red to in the communication of the speaker, of the 3d instant; 
their chairman, in conformity with this instruction, did address 
such a letter to Mr. Kremer, who replied, that he would make a 
communication to the committee ; accordingly, he did send to 
them, through their chairman, a communication, which accompa- 
nies this report, marked A, in which he declines to appear before 
them, for either of the purposes mentioned in their letter, alleging, 
that he could not do so, without appearing, either as an accuser or 
a witness, both of which he protested against. In this posture of 
the case, the committee can take no further steps. They are 
aware, that it is competent to the house, to invest them with power 
to send for persons and papers, and by that means to enable them 
to make any investigation, which might be thought necessary; and 
if they knew any reason for such investigation, they would have 
asked to be clothed with the proper power ; but not having, them- 
selves, any such knowledge, they have felt it to be their duty only 
to lay before the house, the communication, which they have re- 
ceived." 

It can not be denied, that this is one of the most extraordinary 
results recorded in the annals of parliamentary proceedings. That 
Mr. Kremer, in obedience to instructions, should have acted in 
this manner, considering the part he had already acted, is not sur- 
prising, notwithstanding the bold advances he had made, and the 
confident airs he had assumed — notwithstanding he was bound by 
honor and the most solemn engagements. He had pledged him- 
self: "If, upon investigation being instituted, it should appear, 
that he had not sufficient reason to justify the statement he had 
made, he trusted he should receive the marked reprobation which 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 329 

had been suggested by the speaker [referring to the speaker's ap- 
peal]. Let it fall where it might, he was willing to meet the in- 
quiry, and abide the result." It was rightly foreseen, that the 
result of an investigation, would not only defeat the aims of the 
authors of this conspiracy, but cover them with everlasting reproach 
and infamy. Better to retreat, under the guise of a protest, dis- 
graceful though it was, than to brave the inextricable difficulties 
before them — than to fail of their end, and themselves swallow the 
contents of the poisoned chalice, which they had mixed up for one 
sole victim. Justice to Mr. Clay was the very thing they wished 
to keep back, and what was the honor of the house of representa- 
tives of the United States, with members of that body, who could 
concert and carry on such a scheme ? 

The communication from Mr. Kremer, referred to in the report 
of the committee, will be found in the note below.* 

• " Gentlemen : I have received yeur note of yesterday, in which you inform 
me, that you will meet at 10 o'clock this morning, and will there be ready to 
receive any evidence, or explanation, I may have to ofi'er, touching the charges 
referred to in the communication of the speaker of the 3d inst. Placed under 
circumstances unprecedented, and which I believe not only interesting to myself, 
but important as connected with the fundamental principles of our government, I 
have reflected with much deliberation, on the course, which duty to myself and 
my constituents required me to adopt. The result of this reflection is, that I can- 
not, consistently with a proper regard to these duties, assent to place myself be- 
fore your committee, in either of the attitudes indicated in your note. The object 
of the committee does not distinctly appear from your note ; but I may infer from 
its contents, connected with the extraordinary and unprecedented proceedings in 
the case, that it is to hold me responsible, through a committee of the house of rep- 
resentatives, for a letter, dated the 25th of January last, addressed to the editor 
of the Columbian Observer, and published in his paper of the 28th, which was 
intended to communicate, through that channel, information which I deemed in- 
teresting to my constituents, and very important to be known to the whole Amer- 
ican people at this peculiar crisis. Thus viewing the subject, I can not perceive 
any principle of power in the constitution, which can give the house of represen- 
tatives, and consequently a committee created by it, jurisdiction over me as the 
writer of that letter. It neither involves a question of contempt of the house, 
nor an impeachment of an officer of the government under the constitution : and 
I can discover no authority, by which the house can assume jurisdiction in the 
case. If the authority of the house extended to acts of this kind, no limitation 
could be prescribed to its power, and it may reach the publisher as well as the 
writer, and extend to every* member of the government, as well as the speaker of 
the house of representatives. But it is not only the unconstitutionality of the 
power that forbids me to appear before you. Placed as I am, I can not but per- 
ceive the dangerous consequences, as well as its unconstitutional character. 

" Should I yield to such authority, I would be made amenable to a tribunal, 
which, thus constituted, has no prescribed limitation to its rules of proceedings, 
and which is alike unlimited in the nature and extent of the punishment it may 
inflict. Nor can I be ignorant of the fact, that this body, thus unlimited in its 
rules, and in the extent of its powers, is at all times, but more especially at a 
crisis like the present, subject, by its very constitution, and the nature of its func- 
tions, to be acted upon by some of the most powerful passions that actuate the 
human breast, which unfit it to perform, in that cool and deliberate manner, the 
duties which properly belong to a court and jury. If it should be considered as 
proper, that members be held responsible here for the communication of theii 



330 THE GREAT CCXSPIRACY. 

This document claims a place and notice, not on account of its 
nominal author, but as emanating from the conspirators. The dis- 
honor and injustice of this retreat are equalled only by the false and 

opinions out of the house, on public men and public affairs, it would be much 
more safe, that they should be placed at once under the operation of the sedition 
law ; and so far as the members of this house are concerned, the repeal of that 
famous law might be considered as a calamity, rather than a blessing. Thus re- 
garding the constitutional power of the house, and the nature of that which is 
proposed to be exercised in my case, I have determined, under a deep sense of 
duty to myself and my constituents, not to submit to a procedure fraught with 
such dangerous consequences. I therefore protest most solemnly against the as- 
sumption of any jurisdiction, either by the committee or the house of representa- 
tives, that shall jeopard my right to communicate freely to my constituents 
whatever I may believe necessary for the public good. It is not my intention, in 
the slightest degree, to impeach the character either of the committee or of the 
house, for which I have the greatest respect, and the authority of which, within 
its constitutional sphere, I regard it my pride and my duty to sustain. In refus- 
ing to submit to the authority of the house, as the writer of t-he letter before al- 
luded to, it may be proper to remark, in explanation of the admission, which I 
Tnay seem to have made of its jurisdiction : — Whatever assent I may have given, 
was done hastily, relying on the conscious rectitude of my conduct, and regard- 
ing my own case, without having reflected duly on the dangerous principles in- 
volved in the proceedings, and can not therefore be considered as a waiver of 
my rights. The committee will observe, that the honorable speaker, in his card, 
had chosen to make this matter a personal question with the then unknown writer 
of the letter. After due reflection, I determined, at all hazards, not to conceal 
the fact of being the author of the letter, and did not expect, by this disclosure, 
to enable the honorable speaker to place me under the jurisdiction of the house. 
His appeal was sudden and unexpected, and if my admission was made, without 
due regard to all the circumstances and principles of the case, it could be no 
matter of surprise. In deciding the jurisdiction of the committee and the house, 
I feel the authority of another tribunal, before which I shall cheerfully appear, 
and bring forward, forthwith, those facts and circumstances, which, in my opin- 
ion, fully authorize the statements contained in my letter. These I shall spread 
before my constituents, to whom I am amenable for all my conduct, while I am 
honored with a seat in this house, and I shall never hesitate, when the correct- 
ness of my conduct is brought in question, to attempt my vindication before them ; 
and while sustained by them, and the conviction of my own conscience, I shall 
never be deterred from the performance of my duty here or elsewhere. In pre- 
senting my protest, I have gone on the supposition, that it was the intention of the 
house, in raising a committee, to hold me responsible to its jurisdiction, as the 
writer of the letter, which has caused the present proceeding. There is, however, 
another view of the subject, which deserves notice. It may be inferred, from the 
note of the committee, that it is not so much its intention, in requesting my at- 
tendance, to take jurisdiction over me, as to avail themselves of my testimony, 
which the speaker has requested to have investigated by the house. In this view, 
my objection to attending, is no less decisive than the one already considered. It 
would always afford me pleasure, when imperious duty did not forbid, to give all 
the information in my power to an investigation, which may be deemed by the 
house important to the character of any one of its members ; but, circumstanced 
as I am, it is manifest, if I should appear before the committee, I must be consid- 
ered not so much in the light of a mere witness, as that of an accuser, presenting 
charges against the speaker to the house, and those charges not the specific state- 
ments contained in my letter, but the general and indefinite ones, into which the 
speaker has sought an inquiry. It is manifest, that the difference will be great 
between the attitude, in which I should then be placed, and the one in which I 
now stand, and which duty to myself and to my constituents forbid me to aban- 
don. In coming to this determination, I am not governed by any disposition to 
retract or modify anything contained in my letter, which was written under a con- 
viction of its being true, and important to be known. But there are many things 
▼hJch we are bound to communicate to those we represent, which prudence and 



I 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 331 

dishonorable reasoning of the paper. If Mr. Kremer was "placed 
under circumstances unprecedented," as he avers, how came he 
there, and by whose fault? Can a man arraigned for an "unpre- 
cedented" crime, plead its enormity as a reason why the court 
shall not try him"? And will the court discharge him on that 
ground? The nonsense of its being "connected with the funda- 
mental principles of the government," answers itself. What of- 
fence is not so connected, mediately or immediately? His reflec- 
tions "on the course which duty to himself and his constituents 
required him to adopt," in this case, and the conclusion at which 
he arrived, to wit, to fly from justice, were no doubt as wise as 
similar acts of any breaker of law, who forces his way out of court, 
or out of prison. The attempt to escape from the responsibility 
of the charge made on the floor of the house, and to raise a spe 
cial plea about the original publication in the Columbian Observer, 
is in keeping with the dishonor of the whole transaction ; and the 
justification on the ground that "he deemed it interesting to his 
constituents, and important to be known to the whole American 
people," would of course only aggravate the offence, as a calumny, 
and was a most singular reason for withdrawing from an investiga- 
tion. Still turning away from his charge made in the house, and 
falling back on his letter, "he can not perceive any principle of 
power in the constitution which can give the house jurisdiction" 

duty would both forbid being presented to the house, in the form of accusations. 
This will be manifest, when we reflect, that even this house may not at all times 
be free from the vice of passion, and the taint of corruption. Those who have 
read the history of human frailty, will require no proof of this assertion. If this 
view be just, which, I think, can not be questioned, it must be manifest, that a 
member of this house may be placed under such circumstances, as to make it his 
highest duty to speak freely and fully, even of the house itself, to those he repre- 
sents, when it would be madness and folly to present charges for their investiga- 
tion. If such be the obligations of duty in extraordinary cases, the mere dictates 
of prudence will, in many instances, compel him to abstain from presenting to 
the house, for investigation, facts which might implicate the conduct or motives 
of any of its members, when they ought to be freely communicated to his constit- 
uents. 

"In the present case, although I feel myself justified, as the writer of the letter, 
I feel myself bound, both by prudence and duty, not to appear in the character of 
an accuser of the speaker, upon charges not my own, but those which he has re- 
quested to be investigated. I need not advert to circumstances, which render it 
peculiarly improper at the present time. The deep excitement, which the impor- 
tant crisis has produced, the unequal contest between an humble member on the 
floor and the speaker of the house, are themselves circumstances, which can not 
be overlooked, in coming to the conclusion, that the issue should be left before 
the American people, or the ordinary tribunals of the country ; and I therefore 
protest against the proceedings in this view, as well as against the power of the 
house to eriercise jurisdiction over me, as being equally calculated to restrain the 
exercise of my just rights, in an unconstitutional manner. 

" I have the honor to be, with great respect, your obedient servant, 

" George Kremeh. 

"Washington, February 8, 1825." 



332 THE GREAT CON'SPIRACY. 

of the case. Then comes a homily on the danger of public lib 
erty involved in this unconstitutional stretch of power. One rea- 
son assigned is, that, by acquiescing in the proceeding, he would 
be submitting to "a tribunal of unlimited powers." But the con- 
stitution says: "Each house [of Congress] may determine the 
rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly beha- 
vior, and, with concurrence of two thirds, expel a member." So 
here is not only authority for action over members, in cases deter- 
mined by the rules to be offences, but the punishment is limited to 
expulsion, and not unlimited, as Mr. Kremer says. He next 
pleads the special " unfitness of that body to perform in a cool and 
deliberate manner the duties of a court." On the same ground, 
any criminal might escape from any court, and law should never 
be administered, because the authorities are human, and may err ; 
or may be guilty of the error apprehended in this case, to wit, they 
may have a just sense of the nature of the offence. Next is 
invoked the ghost of the old defunct sedition law, as an ad captan- 
dum vulgm — " much more safe to be placed at once under it." 
The fact that the sedition law was dead, proves that this offence 
could be tried nowhere else except in the house of representatives ; 
and no doubt Mr. Kremer had good reason for desiring, that what 
he had said and done as a member of that body, in relation to a 
fellow-member — to the speaker — should come under the same li- 
cense which protected him as the author of the letter — that being 
a transaction out of doors. The gravity with which he arrives at 
his conclusion a second time, and the solemnity with which he pro- 
tests against the power of the house to act in the case, would be 
a most befitting scene for the pencil of Hogarth, if the detestable 
trick of reasoning from the fact of the letter, instead of coming up 
manfully to the charge he had made on the floor of the house, did 
not rescue it from the province of a Hogarth, and assign the task 
to the painter of diabolical plots. And what does this solemn prot- 
est propose to protect? Mr. Kremer's " right yree/?/" to calum- 
niate the speaker of the house of representatives "to his constitu- 
ents;" and to do it with impunity, if he "believes it necessary 
for the public good!" He will never consent to be held account- 
able anywhere for so worthy and patriotic a function. " In refusing 
to submit to the authority of the house," says Mr. Kremer. This, 
certainly, is very cool. He only refuses to submit to the au- 
thority of the body of which he is a member ! But he still assigns 
a reason which can not be admitted — "as the writer of the letter." 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 333 

It was his action as a member of the house, where the letter was 
fathered, that was under investigation. He says what he did in 
the house, in consenting to an investigation, "was done hastily." 
No doubt it was. " Without having reflected duly on the danger- 
ous principles involved in the proceeding." More properly, with- 
out having reflected on the danger to himself. He then flies off 
to the CARD of the honorable speaker, as proposing to make this 
business "a personal affair," though he does not, himself, insist 
on that mode of settlement; but he "determined at all hazards'' 
to throw off the mask. He did not, however, "expect to be 
placed under the jurisdiction of the house." How could the sim- 
ple man expect to get out from under this jurisdiction, so long as 
he was a member, and for all his conduct as a member? He 
was taken by "surprise." Doubtless. And he, George Kre- 
MER, modestly took upon himself to decide the jurisdiction of the 
house. "In deciding," &c. He then appeals to "another tri- 
unal," meaning, doubtless, to challenge a libel suit in the common 
courts. This would seem very fair to the people, to whom all this 
was addressed, inasmuch as they would be very unlikely to think, 
first, that a public man never prosecutes for libel on him, as such; 
and next, that, without the aid of the sedition law, an action of this 
kind could not be maintained. There was, therefore, a doubly- 
false pretence in this, and a double security for the pretender. 
Mr. Kremer stoutly reaffirms his charge, in the very act of repu- 
diating responsibility, and withdrawing from the investigation, and 
announces his purpose to make it good before his constituents and 
all the world ! 

Nearly the whole of Mr. Kremer's reasoning is based on the 
false assumption, that he is arraigned as the writer of tlie letter, 
and he enters a plea against jurisdiotion. He was not ar aigned 
at all. He had made his charge in the house, and offered to 
prove it ; and the course proposed was to give him an opportunity. 
It had become, by his own acts, a question, not only of private, 
but of public justice. He next declines as a witness; then as an 
accuser. In this last character he certainly stood, and this was his 
position. He had not been called as a witness ; nor, as yet, had 
he been required to substantiate his charges. It was his own pro- 
posal ; and the house was throwing open to him the door, and was 
in the way of affording him facilities by resolving itself into a court 
for the occasion, which was its undoubted prerogative. The rea- 
son assigned for declining the office of accuser, after having volun- 



334 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

teered it, was, that he would be required to sustain other than "the 
specific statements of his letter." This was false. Nothing else 
was expected. He speaks of the different "attitudes" of an ac- 
cuser in this case, and a member of the house, and says, tha4; duty 
to himself and his constituents forbid, that he should abandon the 
latter for the former. There could manifestly be no ahandonment 
of his " attitude" as a member, though it might chance to result 
in his expulsion; and it was not less true that he had put himself 
in the " attitude" of accuser, than that his constituents had made 
him a member of Congress. He repeats, that he retracts nothing, 
and believes the whole ; and maintains, that he may say one thing 
in one place (to his constituents), and not be bound to maintain it 
in another (the house of representatives). But he had said the 
same things in the latter place. He seemed to think that the 
house of representatives was a body of doubtful purity, and that it 
would be most prudent for him to keep out of their hands. If this 
"prudence" had begun in good time, it might have been well ; but 
a lecture on this subject ill-becomes one who stands convicted of 
the most censurable rashness. He had already done the very thing 
from which he proposes, by considerations of "prudence," to 
abstain ! 

Again he reiterates the charge, and again declines supporting it ! 
He thinks it would be an unequal contest, because the speaker is 
more powerful than he ; and therefore concludes, that " the issue 
should be left with the American people, or with the ordinary tri- 
bunals of the country." Without a sedition law, it could not be 
brought before the latter. It was a singular inadvertence, that the 
true secret of this conspiracy, viz., the design of bringing it 
"BEFORE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE," and leaving it there, U7ii7i- 
vestigt'ted, to use as they might please, and as they could, then 
and thereafter, should have been here confessed, and that this object 
should have been assigned as one ground of protest against the 
proceeding! "In this view, I therefore protest!" 

It is a remarkable artifice of this document, that its absurd po- 
sition in relation to Mr. Kremer's charge in the house ; its absurd 
reasonings ; its apparently unskilful structure, though well devised 
for its great end ; its repethions ; its diffuseness ; and its numer- 
ous weak and vulnerable points, should be so well calculated to 
produce the Impression, that none but George Kremer could have 
written it ; and though nobody believed that he was the author oi 
either of the papers ascribed to him in this affair, it is quite proba 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 335 

ble, that the thoughts being supplied, he worked them over in his 
own dialect, and then submitted the product for correction and 
sanction. That he had help and superintendence in each of them, 
no one ever doubted. 

The apology for giving so conspicuous a place, and so much 
notice, to this document, consists in the fact, that the position 
which it occupied was taken up as a pivot for a great moral and 
political LEVER to influence and control the whole country, from 
that time henceforth — for that occasion, and for all occasions that 
might arise in future national contests. Nothing could be more 
true, than Mr. Storrs' remark in debate on the appointment of the 
committee, before cited : " If we now deny the inquiry, the nation 
itself will inquire, and pass their jiidgmetit on him [the honorable 
speaker] and us, without proof." The masses of people, in 
a democratic community, are naturally jealous of eminent and 
influential men, slow to give them credit for virtue before they are 
adopted in their affections, credulous toward all rumors of fault in 
them, and are incapable of knowing what can and what can not 
be true. The greater the improbability of an alleged fault, in the 
judgment of discerning minds, so much more powerfully does it 
impress the imagination of common persons, and so much stronger 
is the disposition to entertain it, if they do not care about the per- 
son or persons accused ; and when once the story has obtained 
credit, though utterly false, and surpassing all human probability, 
it can never be eradicated from the mind of a generation that has 
cherished it. Still more difficult is it to obtain a just verdict, when 
slander is propagated and continuously supported by a chief that 
is idoHzed by his adherents. Even when a case of slander has 
been tried by the proper tribunal, and a full acquittal obtained, 
the injured person is never indemnified in common opinion. A 
man acquitted, can not be so pure, before all the world, as one 
never accused. But when the only tribunal that can try his case, 
lets the accuser go free, after justice has been invoked, the ac- 
cused is condemned in the judgment of mankind, till the error of 
the court in denying justice, can be made manifest. The only 
appeal is to the public, which inclines to respect constituted tribu- 
nals, more than private individuals. This was the irresistible 
element of power over Mr. Clay, which was the subject of delib- 
erate calculation by this conspiracy, when Mr. Kremer was in- 
structed and required (he appeared to be entirely under their con- 
trol) to decline an investigation. 



336 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

It may, indeed, seem strange, that the house of representatives 
should have consented to this injustice at the time, or that an 
investigation was not afterward forced upon them. But the 
expression of opinion, in the vote for the committee — 125 to 69 — 
was regarded as a verdict ; the report of the committee was made 
on the 9th of February, and the election of president by the house 
was to be on that day ; all were absorbed in that eventful struggle ; 
the position taken by the conspirators, in retreating from an inves- 
tigation, closed the door, except by a resort to forcible measures ; 
there was no tangible force that could be applied ; nobody on the 
spot gave the least credit to the charges, and they were commonly 
pronounced unworthy of judicial inquiry ; and there never was a 
time afterward, when the practicability of an investigation was not 
further and further removed. From that day to this, no intelligent 
person of either party, not interested in the conspiracy, has ever 
pretended that the charges were worthy of respect, while the minds 
of a great mass of the people of the United States have been poi- 
soned by them, and the conspirators have thereby controlled the 
destinies of the parties concerned, and the destiny of the nation. 

It is not improbable, that the conspirators were surprised at the 
course into which their machinations conducted them, and that 
they intended, or hoped, to force Mr. Clay into the support of 
General Jackson, for fear of consequences to himself. He could 
not fail to see at a glance the terrible ordeal through which he was 
doomed to pass, if he should do the very thing which this charge 
of bargain predicted. His appeal to the bouse, therefore, calling 
for investigation, might have been unexpected. On this suppo- 
sition, they were ill prepared for the next step, and were obliged 
to take counsel. The indiscretion into which Mr. Kremer imme- 
diately plunged, is at least some evidence of this. It involved 
them in a difficulty, from which it was not easy to extricate them- 
selves, and the manner of their getting out of it, dooms them to 
ineffaceable dishonor. If there had been the faintest shadow of 
evidence to support the charge — if a single witness could have 
been found to say he had observed one act, or heard one word, 
from a friend of Mr. Adams or Mr. Clay, that had a squinting 
toward bargain, the conspirators would have seized upon it, and 
though Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay were perfectly innocent, there 
would have been no escape for them. It is singular, indeed, when 
it is known to be customary to electioneer in such cases — to say 
and ^o things, which, in an opponent's hands, might have been 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 337 

tortured into an appearance of bargaining — that nothing of the kind 
could be found, or ever has been found. 

The conspirators, having gone thus far, were compelled to go 
farther, or be themselves ruined. An investigation would have 
established the innocence of the parties accused, would have set 
them on the highest eminence, and would have plunged the plot- 
ters into hopeless perdition, as to their political prospects. Since 
General Jackson could not be elected this time, by forcing Mr. 
Clay to hrs support — disgraceful as it was to retreat fpom the 
investigation — they resolved that he should be elected next time, 
by keeping this charge for ever over Mr. Clay's head ! And Mr. 
Kremer was instructed accordingly. 

It is of very little consequence who wrote this document of Mr. 
Kremer ; but there is a remarkable coincidence of thought and 
expression between it and the speech made by the Hon. S. D. 
Ingham, of Pennsylvania, when the appointment of the committee 
of investigation was under debate. For the gratification of the 
curious, and not less for the instruction of all, a few of these twin 
passages are offered for consideration : — 

" The question," said Mr. Ingham, " had been represented on 
all sides, as a question of privilege. He had had the honor to be 
present some years ago, when the nature of this prerogative under- 
went a full and solemn discussion, and he well remembered, that 
it was then determined, that the power of the house to 'punish, was 
a power which had no limits.'''' 

A perusal of Mr. Kremer's letter to the committee, will show, 
that this boundless power of the house — (not a fact, however) — is 
a prominent and leading idea in that document, frequently iterated. 

Mr. Ingham says : " But may you not, on this principle, follow 
up all the printers in the United States?" Mr. Kremer says: 
" If the authority of the house extended to acts of this kind, no 
limitation could be prescribed to its power, and it may reach the 
publisher as well as the writer," &c. Mr. Ingham says : "Is 
there any earthly difference between a newspaper article written by 
a member out of this house, and such an article written by any 
other person?" Mr. Kremer says : " If it should be considered 
as proper, that members be held responsible here for the commu- 
nication of their opinions out of the house, on public men and 
public affairs." &c. Mr. Ingham says : " Did a gentleman, by 
becoming a member of this house, deprive himself of the ordinary 
privileges which he would have had, had he remained out of the 
house ?" Mr. Kremer says : " I can not perceive any principle of 
power in the constitution, which can give the house of representa- 



338 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

lives jurisdiction over me, as the writer of that letter." Mr. Ing- 
ham says : " Might he not write to his constituents, the same as 
other gentlemen wrote to their friends?" — "If an attempt were 
made to arraign me for writing a letter to my constituents, I would 
not answer." Mr. Kremer says : " Information, which I deemed 
interesting to my constituents" — " facts which might implicate the 
conduct or motives of members, which ought to be communicated 
to their constituents" — " I protest against the assumption of any 
jurisdiction by the house, that shall jeopard my right to com- 
municate freely to my constituents, whatever I may believe neces- 
sary for the public good" — " the attitude which duty to myself and 
my constituents, forbids me to abandon," &c. Mr. Ingham says : 
" I would stand mute, and deny, and defy your power. You might 
imprison, and manacle me with chains. But you should never com- 
pel me to become a voluntary instrument to violate the constitution 
in my person." Mr. Kremer says : "It is not only the unconsti- 
tutionality of the power, which forbids me to appear before you ; 
placed as I am, I can not but perceive the dangerous consequences, 
as well as its unconstitutional character." — " Thus regarding the 
constitutional power of the house, I have determined not to sub- 
mit to a proceeding fraught with such dangerous consequences." 
Mr. Ingham says : " We all know there is already a great excite- 
ment existing, and that it is increasing every moment like the 
rapidity of a descending body." Mr. Kremer says : " Nor can I 
be ignorant of the fact, that this body is at all times, but more 
especially at a crisis like the present, subject to be acted upon by 
some of the most powerful passions that actuate the human breast" 
— " The deep excitement which the important crisis has pro- 
duced," &c. Mr. Ingham says: " What are the respective con- 
ditions of the two individuals concerned ? The one occupies a 
lofty station — he is placed high before the view of the country — 
he possesses the just confidence of the members of this house, &c. 
All these things create a great difference between him and the 
member who has accused him." Mr. Kremer says : " I must be 

considered as presenting charges against the speaker It is 

manifest, that the difference will be great The unequal 

contest between an humble member on the floor, and the speaker 
of the house, are circumstances which can not be overlooked." 

These resemblances of thought and expression, between Mr, 
Ingham's speech and Mr. Kremer's reptUed letter to the commit- 
tee, might be further cited. They are at least quite remarkable 
for accidental coincidences. Excepting a few features peculiar to 
each position, they might naturally enough be taken for so many 
TWINS, for reflected images from the same original, the one an 
echo of the other. Doubtless, the member, who pocketed th^ 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 339 

paper, which Mr. Kremer proposed to sign to satisfy Mr. Clay, 
and who advised Mr. Kremer to take no step without the appro- 
bation of his friends, would not be disinclined to render his ser- 
vices in preparing this communication to the committee. 

The position of the conspirators and of Mr. Clay at the end of 
this first stage, before the election for president had taken place, 
may be defined as follows : " Now let Mr. Clay support Mr. Adams, 
if he DARE. Now let him accept the office of secretary of state, 
if he DARE. If he does either — especially if he does both — we 
HAVE HIM." If he had done the first, and not the last, the charge 
would still have been maintained, with this difference, that he had 
only been frightened out of the secretaryship, by the justness of 
the accusation. 

No one can fail to be impressed with the atrocious character of 
this plot. The frankness, fearlessness, and lofty dignity of the 
accused, stand in striking contrast to the diabolical designs of his 
accusers. Conscious of innocence, he throws himself on the 
weapons of his assailants, and bids them strike. He appeals to 
the only rightful court, and demands judgment. From the pres- 
ence of that tribunal, constituted for the occasion, and ready to 
Droceed, the accusers flee ! 



34:0 THE GREAT CONSPIRACF. 



CHAPTER XV. 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 



General Jackson comes out as the Public Accuser of Mr. Clay. — The Fayette- 
ville Letter. — General Jackson's Letter to Carter Beverley. — The Manner of 
its being made public. — Mr. Clay's Reply to it in an Address to the Public. — 
General Jackson's Address to the Public. — These Documents considered. 

It has been seen, in the preceding chapter, that the charge of 
BARGAIN between Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay, was got up, first to 
frighten Mr. Clay into the support of General Jackson ; and fail- 
ing in that, the investigation was dishonorably declined, to keep 
the charge pending for future use. It was only necessary, after 
the first disappointment, to bar inquiry, and hang up the charge — 
to lodge it in the public mind of the country, to work there as it 
might and necessarily must, without a judicial verdict, without 
check, and with the evidence before the people, that the facts 
which the charge predicted, had come to pass. What did it pre- 
dict? That Mr. Clay and his friends would vote for Mr. Adams. 
So they did. That Mr. Clay would be made secretary of state. 
So he was. Was not, then, the charge proved by the events ? 
It was not enough to do away its force in the popular mind, to 
say, that Mr. Clay and his friends had a right to vote for Mr. Ad- 
ams ; or that the claims of the west, of Jackson men and all, 
forced Mr. Clay into the state department — both of which were 
undoubtedly true. They who conceived and published the charge, 
knew, that, if it did not accomplish its purpose in the first in- 
stance, by destroying Mr. Clay's freedom and that of his friends, 
and by forcing them to vote for a man to fill the presidential chair, 
to whom they were conscientiously opposed, it would answer all 
their purposes another time. They foresaw, that the charge would 
be identified with coming events, and that, with the mass of unre- 
flecting minds, it would require no other evidence of its truth. 
When suspicion was thus roused, the people generally would not 
think, that the very a«ts represented as criminal, might not only 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 341 

be innocent, but virtuous — a high, conscientious, and Sdcred duty , 
that, with honorable men, they should be presumed innocent , 
that, in doing the same things, the accusers claimed to be inno- 
cent ; and that it would have been equally fair to hurl back the 
charge on the aggressors. 

When the conspirators had succeeded in arresting the investi- 
gation in the house of representatives, by such dishonorable 
means, the field was all their own, and they had only to choose 
their own time, and their own way, to accomplish their end. In 
the meantime, the charge was kept before the country, and kept 
moving, in connexion with the obvious facts, which were alleged 
as proof: Mr. Adams as president, elected by Mr. Clay and his 
friends ; and Mr. Clay as secretary of state, made secretary, as 
averred, in reward for his services in making Mr. Adams presi- 
dent. Such was the charge, and such the facts. It need not be 
said, that the people are naturally jealous of men in power, and 
eagerly listen to accusations against them ; and that they easily 
sympathize with men out of power, who allege that they are un- 
justly kept out. How much more with a popular favorite, sup- 
posed to be deprived of his rights ? 

In evidence, that such was the prospective plan of this con- 
spiracy, it might be sufficient to call attention to the artful man- 
ner, in which Mr. Buchanan introduces the following paragraph, 
in a letter to the editor of the United States Telegraph, dated Oc- 
tober 16, 1826 : " The facts are before the world, that Mr. 
Clay and his particular friends made Mr. Adams president, and 
Clay secretary of state. The people will draw their own infer- 
tnce from such conduct, and the circumstances connected with it. 
They will judge of the cause, from the effects.^'' 

Mr. Benton (Hon. T. H.), when asked by Mr. Wm. Eckert, 
at St. Charles, Mo., in the fall of 1827, " if he believed, that Ad- 
ams and Clay were guilty of bargain and sale, or barter?" replied : 
" Believe it ? I am bound to believe it. I may say, I know it. 
No man, in his common senses, at the public scene of action, as 
I was, could believe otherwise. The fact was this : Clay says, 
' I will make you president, if you will make me secretary.' What 
was the RESULT ? It was done." 

The Hon. Lynn Boyd, of Kentucky, said on the floor of the 
house of representatives, April 30, 1844 : " What was then ru- 
mor, became fact, on the organization of the administration. 
Many thought they saw in that arrangement, both the cause and 



342 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

effect of Mr. Adams's election, and the confirmation of Mr. Kre- 
mer's charge.'' 

In a preamble of the legislature of Tennessee, prefixed to reso- 
lutions on this subject, passed in 1827, they say : " Mr. Adams 
desired the office of president. He went into the combination 
without it, and came out with it. Mr. Clay desired that of secre- 
tary of state. He went into the combination without it, and came 
out with it." 

The notorious George Kremer, in a speech at Berlin, Pa., 
September 17, 1827, said : " Are the charges true ? Can any 
one doubt it, who considers, that he [Mr. Clay] has 'performed the 
act, which the [my] letter charges him with intending to do, and 
now holds the office, which was ijroclaimed as the consideration 
for the service rendered?" If Mr. Kremer did not know the in- 
justice of this, as a non sequitur, no one, probably, would make 
such an apology for Mr. Buchanan, or Mr. Benton, or Mr. Boyd, 
or the legislature of Tennessee. 

In this state of things, and with these advantages. General 
Jackson was a candidate for 1828. With the exception of the 
common warfare of the newspapers, which never permitted the 
subject to sleep, the charge against Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay, had 
not, for more than two years, received any new shape, nor beeir 
renewed by any responsible authority. In the spring of 1827, 
however, the following letter appeared anonymously, in the Fay- 
etteville Observer, North Carolina : — 

" Nashville, March 8, 1827. 

" I have just returned from General Jackson's. I found a 
crowd of company with him. Seven Virginians were of the 
number. He gave me a most friendly reception, and urged me 
to stay some days longer with him. He told me this morning, 
be/ore all his company, in reply to a question I put to him con- 
cerning the election of J. Q. Adams to the presidency, that Mr. 
Clay's friends made a proposition to his friends, that, if they 
would promise, for him [General Jackson] 7iot to put Mr. Adams 
into the seat of secretary of state, Mr. Clay and his friends would, 
i7i one hour, make him [Jackson] the president. He [General 
Jackson] most indignantly rejected the proposition, and declared 
he would not compromit himself; and unless most openly and 
fairly made the president by Congress, he would never receive it 
He declared, that he said to them, he would see the whole earth 
sink under them, before he would bargain or intrigue for it." 

A letter of this character, from such a quarter, though anony- 
mous, could not fail to attract attention, and be circulated rapi ily 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 343 

throughout the Union. It purported to be from Nashville, and 
fresh from the Hermitage, of the truth of which there was no 
reason to doubt. It was the first roar of the Hon, after more than 
two years of apparently quiet repose. And there was something 
starthng in the paraphernalia of the display. " A crowd of com- 
pany, and seven Virginians." The writer, a Virginian, was greet- 
ed with " a most friendly reception, and urged to stay longer." 
It has the appearance of a grand council. It was so, doubt- 
less, and might have been a very innocent one. It was natural 
enough, that a candidate for the presidency should have a good 
deal of company, and perfectly proper, that the plan of the cam- 
paign, and the most effective modes of action, if honorable, should 
be a subject of discussion. It is somewhat remarkable, however, 
that the writer of this letter should have left the Hermitage the 
very day when the old charge of bargain between Mr. Adams 
and Mr. Clay had been a subject of consideration " before all the 
company,'''' to announce to the world, for the first time, that Gen- 
eral Jackson himself was prepared, and had made up his mind, 
to renew the charge on his own responsibility ! It is true, this 
announcement does not at first appear as authorized ; but a subse- 
quent letter from General Jackson, invoked by the writer of this, 
will show, that he was not only not disappointed, but that he be- 
trayed manifest satisfaction : " Your inquiries were answered/ree/y 
and frankly^'' — " having no concealment myself, nor any dread,''^ 
&c. — " my feelings toward you are not the least changed. I k\.- 
WAYS intended,^"" &c. It is moreover remarkable, that this writer 
should have made his communication to the Fayetteville Observer 
before he had started on his return, as if it were not only a thing 
resolved on, but a thing that required despatch. He wrote from 
Nashville the very day the precious morceau was put in his pos- 
session. It was the burden of his communication — apparently 
his sole errand. 

This was a new start of the ball. And whence was it thus 
tossed on the wide theatre of the Union? From the Hermit- 
age ! It was a matter confessedly talked of " before all the 
company,'''' and it was not a small company, nor were they unim- 
portant characters. General Jackson spoke ^^ freely and fran'kly''' 
on the subject, " having no concealment, nor any dread — he al- 
ways intended." — " Always." How long? From what time? 
" Always'"' is a good while. No one can suppose, that any less is 
meant by this, than from the time when the charge was first 

Vol. T.— 21 



344 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

brought forward by George Kremer, in January, 1S25, a little 
less than two years and a half, taking the date of these expressions. 
"I always intended," clearly proves, that he always considered it Aw 
own affair. It has been seen, in the preceding chapter, that Mr. Ea- 
..on did not deny, when he had the strongest motive for denying, 
if he could, that he had to do with Mr. Kremer's card published 
in the National Intelligencer, in answer to Mr. Clay's card. Is 
it to be supposed, that General Jackson — than whom no person 
could be more deeply interested, and who was on the spot — could 
have been an indifferent spectator of the agitation occasioned by 
the publication of Mr. Kremer's letter in the Columbian Observer, 
January, 1825? Or that lie and Mr. Eaton, for example — not to 
speak of other intimate friends — should never have had any con- 
versations on the subject, while these events were passing ? It would 
be very extraordinary if they had not. In Gen. Jackson's address 
to the public, of the 18th of July, as will hereafter be seen, his inti- 
macy with Major Eaton at that time, and on this subject, is appa- 
rent by his own statement: "The evening before he [Mr. Bu- 
chanan] had communicated substantially the same proposition [of 
bargain] to Major Eaton," &c. General Jackson, it would 
seem, was every day, and if occasion required, every hour, in- 
formed as to the position and progress of the Kremer affair of 
1825. Being on the ground as a member of the senate, and one 
of the two principal parties interested, it could not be otherwise. 
He was, indeed, the accuser, but did not appear publicly as such, 
till 1827. 

He had his thoughts, and "always intended." It will be 
seen by-and-by what he intended. But his evidence on the 
subject, as announced in the letter published at Fayetteville, es- 
tablishes the fact, that there were communications between him and 
others in relation to this affair, and that he showed a great deal 
of feeling, as well he might, according to his account of it. It is 
also evident, by his own statements, as will be seen, that, from the 
first, he had "aZ^^;a?/s" had a settled, though contingent plan, as to 
how he would treat the matter publicly. But as that contingency 
had not happened, down to the 8th March, 1827, a step was then 
taken, in consequence of his own act, to which he never objected, 
and which could be sustained only by his authority, to force its 
happening. One thing is certain, that he could not decently ap- 
pear upon the public stage, as an actor in this scene, until it did 
happen. Hence, as may be supposed, the conversation "before 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 345 

all the company," at the Hermitage, on the Sth March, 1827, as 
reported in the letter of the same date above cited, from Nashville 
to Fayetteville. This was manifestly well calculated to make a 
stir in the land. And so it did. It was everywhere copied, and 
remarked upon according to the feeling of parties. Mr. DufF 
Green, the editor of the Washington Telegraph, a Jackson paper, 
came out, and said, that he had heard General Jackson, in March, 
1825, make the same statement, as that contained in the letter pub- 
lished in the Fayetteville Observer. Here was a double echo. A 
correspondent of the ^'■Democratic Press,^^ under date of Wash- 
mgton, 18th April, 1827, having quoted the letter from Nashville, 
of the Sth of March, said: — 

" After reading this extraordinary declaration of General Jack- 
son, ^before all his company,^ I called on Mr. Clay, and inquired, 
if he knew anything about it? He [Mr. Clay] rephed without 
hesitation, and with his accustomed frankness, that 'the statement, 
that his friends had made such a proposition as the letter describes, 
to the friends of General Jackson, was, as far as he knew or be- 
lieved, utterly destitute of foundation ; that he was unwilling to 
believe, that General Jackson had made any such statement; but 
that, no matter with whom it originated, he was fully persuaded it 
was a gross fabrication, of the same calumnious character with the 
Kremer story.' " 

This denial, as will be seen, was expressly authorized by Mr. 
Clay, which he himself afterward recognises. 

The Washington ''National Journal,'" of the 2Sth April, 1827, 
speaking of the Fayetteville letter, and Mr. Green's (Telegraph's) 
endorsement of its veracity, said : — 

"He [General Jackson] now stands before the nation as the 
direct public accuser of Mr. Clay and his friends, and by inference, 
of Mr. Adams also. The accusation has been deliberately denied. 
And if General Jackson should not sustain it by competent and 
credible proof, the American public will not be restrained by the 
grateful respecNadaich they have hitherto cherished for him, from 
characterizing the charge, as in that event, it will deserve to be 
considered." 

The common impression was, that the anonymous letter from 
Nashville, of the Sth March, was not altogether without authority, 
and that some interesting and important developments might soon 
be expected. The author of the letter, Mr. Carter Beverley, of 
Virginia, getting to be known as such, was compelled to call on 
General Jackson to support him, in answer to which he received 
the following communication : — 



346 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

"Hermitage, June 6th, 1827. 
"Dear Sir: Your letter of the l-5th uhimo, from Louisville 
Ky., is just received, and in conformity with your request, I ad- 
dress my answer to Wheeling, Va. Your inquiries relative to the 
proposition of bargain made through Mr. Clay's friends, to some 
of mine, concerning the then pending presidential election, were 
answered freely and frankly at the time, but without any calcula- 
tion that they would be thrown into the public journals ["?]. But 
FACTS can not be altered. And as your letter seems not to have 
been written for publication [V], I can assure you, that, having no 
concealment myself, nor any dread arising from what I may have 
said on the occasion and subject alluded to, my feelings toward 
you are not the least changed. I always intended, should Mr. 
Clay come out over his own name, and deny having any knowl- 
edge of the communication made by his friends to my friends, and 
to me, that I would give him the name of the gentleman, through 
whom that communication came. I have not seen your letter al- 
luded to as having been published in the Telegraph. Although that 
paper, as I am informed, is regularly mailed for me at Washington, 
still 1 receive it irregularly, and that containing your letter has not 
come to hand. Of course I can not say, whether your statement 
is substantially correct or not. I will repeat, however, again, the 
occurrence, and to which my reply to you must have conformed, 
and from which, if there has been any variation, you can correct 
it. It is this: Early in January, 1825, a member of Congress, 
of high respectability, visited me one morning, and observed, that 
he had a communication he was desirous to make to me ; that he was 
informed there was a great intrigue going on, and that it was right 
I should be informed of it ; that he came as a friend, and let me re- 
ceive the communication as I might, the friendly motives though 
which it was made, he hoped would prevent any change of friend- 
ship or feeling in regard to him. To which 1 replied, from his 
high standing as a gentleman and member of Congress, and from 
his uniform friendly and gentlemanly conduct toward myself, I 
could not suppose he would make any communication to me, which 
he supposed was improper. Therefore, his motives being pure, 
let me think as I might of the communication, my feelings toward 
him would remain unaltered. The gendeman proceeded : He 
said he had been informed by the friends of Mr. Clay, that the 
friends of Mr. Adams had made overtures to them, saying, if Mr. 
Clay and his friends would unite in aid of Mr. Adams's election, 
Mr. Clay should be secretary of state; that the friends of Mr. 
Adams were urging, as a reason to induce the friends of Mr. Clay 
to accede to their proposition, that if I were elected president, Mr. 
Adams would be continued secretary of state (inuendo, there would 
be no room for Kentucky) ; that the friends of Mr. Clay stated, 
the west did not wish to separate from the west, and if I would 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 347 

say, or permit any of my confidential friends to say, that in case 
I were elected president, Mr. Adams should not be continued sec- 
retary of state, by a complete union of Mr. Clay and his friends, 
they would put an end to the presidential contest in one hour. 
And he was of opinion it was right to fight such intriguers with 
their own weapons. To which, in substance, I replied — that in 
pulitics, as in everything else, my guide was principle ; and con- 
trary to the expressed and unbiased will of the people, I never 
would step into the presidential chair ; and requested him to say to 
Mr. Clay and his friends (for I did suppose he had come from Mr. 
Jlay, although he used the term of ' Mr. Clay's friends'), that before 
I would reach the presidential chair, by such means of bargain 
and corruption, I would see the earth open and swallow both Mr. 
Clay and his friends and myself with them. If they had not con- 
fidence in me to believe, if I were elected, that I would call to my 
aid in the cabinet men of the first virtue, talent, and integrity, not 
to vote for me. The second day after this communication and 
reply, it was announced in the newspapers, that Mr. Clay had come 
out openly and avowedly in favor of Mr. Adams. It may be 
proper to observe, that, on the supposition that Mr. Clay was not 
privy to the proposition stated, I may have done injustice to him. 
If so, the gentleman informing me can explain. 

"I am, very respectfully, your most obedient servant, 

"Andrew Jackson. 

"Mr. Carter Beverley." 

Ulterior events have contributed much to elucidate this letter of 
General Jackson to Mr. Beverley. Itself, that of July 18th to the 
public, Mr. Buchanan's, in answer to the last, Mr. Markley's, 
Major Eaton's, and other papers, growing out of these, in connex- 
ion with concurrent events, have proved, that the Kremer charges, 
originally published in the Columbian Observer, January 28th, 
1825, are identified in the same comprehensive plot with these 
transactions of 1827 ; and that they originated in the same source. 
They are traced to the communication alleged by General Jack- 
son, in this letter of June 6th, 1827, to have been made to him- 
self in January, 1825. Of course, everything said, written, pub- 
lished, and done, in this affair, by Mr. Kremer, and his coadju- 
tors, in 1825, grew out of this. General Jackson did not appear 
then, but appeared afterward. This letter of June 6th, to Mr. 
Beverley, is one part of the unmasking. 

He says to Mr. Beverley, "Your inquiries relative to the propo- 
sition of horgain, made through Mr. Clay's friends, to some of 
mine, concerning the then presidential election, were answered 
freely andfrankhj, at the time, hut ivithout ojnj calculation that they 



348 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

would he thrown into the jmblic journals.'''' It would be improper 
to say, that the conversation at the Hermitage, on the 8th of 
March, "before all the company," was arranged, with a view to a 
specific result; because the motives can not be proved, though, as 
General Jackson says, in the Calhoun correspondence, ^'■motives 
are fairly inferred from actions.'''' When a plot is proved, as is 
now the case, in regard to this whole affair, the conduct of the 
agents, in all its parts, is justly viewed with suspicion. This 
answer — which, as appears from this letter, was a ver} minute and 
circumstantial detail, of a striking character, implicating absent 
persons in great moral turpitude, crime — was made ^'■freely and 
frankly,'''' in such circumstances, before such a company, without 
injunction of confidence; "but, without any calculation that it 
would be thrown into the public journals !" Who is so simple as 
to take this? There was not a man there, beheving it, and being 
honest, that could discharge a good conscience, till he had blazed 
It over the whole land. Mr. Beverley, like an honest man, sat 
down to the task that very day. That no one else of the company 
did it, proves, either that they had not sufficient honesty, or that it 
was understood, that Mr. Beverley would see to it. It appears, 
that he posted ofi" without delay to Nashville, the nearest town, to 
execute the function. Nor does the general rebuke him for a 
breach of confidence ; he expresses no regret ; but reconciles him- 
self to the event, by the reflection that " facts can not be altered." 
What is this, but an iteration of the charge ? He goes on to con- 
sole his unfortunate friend : "As your letter seems [where is the 
evidence?] not to have been written for publication, / can assure 
you, that, having no concealment myself, nor any dread, arising from 
what I may have said on the occasion and subject alluded to, my 
feeliiigs toward you arc not the least changed.''^ This, certainly, 
ought to be satisfactory — '■'■not the least changed.'''' And the gen- 
eral, in this private and confidential communication, which Mr. 
Beverley let slip through his hands to the public, could not help 
disclosing his intention, and expressing his gratification — " having 
no concealment myself, nor any dread, I always intended, should 
Mr. Clay come out over his own name, and deny having any 
knowledge of the communication made by his friends to my friends, 
and to me, that I would give him the name of the gentleman 
through whom that communication came." As if Mr. Clay had 
not denied ! From the first appearance of Mr. Kremer's letter in 
the Columbian Observer, in January, 1825, till General Jackson 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 349 

wrote this letter of the 6th June, 1827, from the Hermitage, to 
Mr. Beverley, the denial of Mr. Clay had been constantly ringing 
in his ears! The denial in 1825 was invested with all the solem- 
nity of the judicial action of the highest court in the nation, and 
there it stood, and still stands. It has never been disposed of. 
General Jackson (not in person, for he chose not to appear) and 
his friends, through their organ, Mr. Kremer, were the party, who 
refused to come to trial. In numerous other forms — in all forms 
proper for the different occasions — Mr. Clay's denial was before 
the public. It was in his card, pubhshed in the National Intelli- 
gencer, February 1, 1825; it was comprehended in his letter to 
Judge Brooke, of January 28, 1825 ; in his circular to his con- 
stituents ; in his Lewisburg speech — everywhere and anywhere, 
that it was proper for him to appear, in contradiction of such an 
atrocious calumny. The moment the letter from an anonymous 
correspondent (since recognised as Mr. Beverley), from Nashville, 
appeared in the Fayetteville Observer, a denial, expressly authorized 
by Mr. Clay, dated at Washington, April 16th — before cited — 
was published by a correspondent of the " Democratic Press." 
And yet General Jackson has the assurance to say, in this letter 
of the 6th of June, " I had always intended, should Mr. Clay 
come out, over his own name, and deny," &c. " Over his own 
name.^^ There was an apparent technical evasion here. But even 
that will not do. For he had " come out," many times, " over 
his own name," as the above-cited facts show. 

" I have not seen your letter alluded to, as having been pub- 
lished in the Telegraph. Although that paper, as I am informed, 
is regularly mailed for me at Washington, still I receive it irregu- 
larly, and that containing your letter, has not come to hand." It 
is charitably supposed he meant to say he had not seen it "in the 
Telegraph." Possibly, he had not read it. It might be very un- 
necessary, since he could not be ignorant of its contents. He had 
at least heard of it, and there was scarcely a paper of either party, 
that did not contain it — certainly none of his own party ; and it is 
hardly to be supposed that a man, occupying the position of a 
candidate for the presidency, did not look at the papers which 
supported him ! But he affects to be ignorant of this letter, em- 
anating directly from the Hermitage, and making so much noise 
in the world ! This is an apology for giving a full and true copy 
of the conversation — the most recent version well conned. Mr. 
Beverley wanted to know, whether he had said anything incorrect ; 



350 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

but General Jackson desires to publish that, which is most tir- 
cumsta?itial, as well as correct. "I will," therefore, "repeat," 
&c. ; " from which, if there has been any variation, you can cor- 
rect it." Then comes the true copy, in which the general makes 
it all out, according to his conscience ! The points of the state- 
ment are as follows : 1. " A member of Congress, of high respec- 
tability, visited" the general. 2. And "observed, he had a com- 
munication he was desirous to make." 3. " He was informed 
there was a great intrigue going on, and that it was right I should 
be informed of it." This was interesting. 4. " He came as a 
frie?id.'' He was not, then, a friend of Mr. Clay. 5. " Let me 
receive the communication as I might, the friendly motives, through 
which it was made, he hoped, would prevent any change of friend- 
ship or feeling, in regard to him." There was, then, an under- 
stood " friendship." All he wanted was " no changed 6. " To 
which, I replied, from his high standing as a gentleman, and mem- 
ber of Congress, and from his uniform , friendly , and gentlemanly 
conduct toward myself, 1 could not suppose he would make any 
communication to me, which he supposed was improper." Cer- 
tainly not. " Therefore, his motives being fure'^ — doubtless they 
were very pure — " let me think as I might of the communication, 
my feelings toward him would remain unaltered.^'' This was an 
excellent and convenient preliminary arrangement ; because, hor- 
rible as the communication proved to be. General Jackson was 
pledged to receive it graciously, and dismiss the messenger with 
undiminished confidence ! 7. " The gentleman proceeded," and 
made the communication, which need not be recited. 8. " And 
he was of opinion, it was right to fight such intriguers with their 
own weapons." This is an important point. 9. The general 
declines, and according to his own account, sends a message back 
to Mr. Clay and his friends, that he would see them all sunk, and 
sink with them, "before he would," &c. 10. General Jackson 
admits, that, " if Mr. Clay was not privy to the proposition, I may 
have done injustice to him." Not to have settled this question 
first, was not only the greatest possible injustice to Mr. Clay, but 
a violation of the usages of society. 

The correspondence below, will show, that this letter was made 
public sooner, and probably in a difi'erent mode, from what had 

been planned.* 

• « Wheeling, Va., June 25, 1827. 
" Sir : The public mind, having been for months extremely agitated, in conse- 
quence of a letter of mine to a friend in Fayetteville, N. C, in March last, pub- 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 351 

Mr. Clay having possession of General Jackson's letter of June 
6th, to Mr. Beverley, obtained in the manner disclosed in the 

lished in the paper of that place, I take pleasure indeed of gratifying them with a 
full communication of all the circumstances developed to me by General Jackson, 
•which gave rise to the letter from me in reference to it. It will be seen, that this 
communication embraces infinitely more subject than was contained in my letter; 
and, indeed, it goes more fundamentally into the whole train of mattei;, connected 
with the subject. After being variously attacked by those detestable, hireling, 
scurrilous printers of the west, in various directions, subservient as they are to 
Mr. Clay and executive purposes, this letter from the general may be supposed a 
relief to me. I feel, indeed, highly gratified in receiving it. And, although it 
has not taken the course I exactly calculated upon, yet, as the public anxiety is 
great to reach the truth of the case, I avail myself of the opportunity given me, 
of drawing it, ere long, to both point and termination. I have written on to Gen. 
Jackson, informing him precisely of the course and bearing of the subject. Mr. 
Clay having peremptorily and positively denied the whole, both as regards himself 
and his friends, will, of course, bring the circumstances fully and fairly out. I 
can not, myself, have the smallest possible doubt about the issue. You will be 
pleased to publish the short correspondence I had with Mr. Noah Zaive, of this 
place, and his note to me, with the certificate respecting Mr. Clay's denial. I beg 
that the whole may be at once published. Mr. Clay having gotten a copy of Gon. 
Jackson's letter to me, without my expectation or approbation at all, I deem it 
proper that there should be no delay in its publication by me. The course pur- 
sued to obtain the copy taken by Mr. Clay with him, is, in my opinion, altogether 
incorrect and improper, and I endeavored to arrest it before the copy was made 
out. But, as will be seen, by the enclosed certificate, the letter was withheld, 
and denied to me, until the whole was completed; and not only one, but two 
copies taken of it. 

" I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

" Carter Beverley. 
" Gen. Duff Green." [Editor of the Telegraph, Washington.] 

" Wheeling, June 24, 1827. 

" Dear Sir : The very high respect I have for you, and your political charac- 
ter, added to the great zeal I feel for the honor and welfare of our country, in- 
duces me to announce to you the receipt, last night, from General Jackson, of a 
letter, dated the 6th instant, from his residence in Tennessee. He most unequiv- 
ocally confirms all I have said regarding the overture made to him, pending the 
last presidential election ; and asserts a great deal more than he told me, going most 
circumstantially and minutely into the business. It was always his intention, he 
says, that if Mr. Clay ever denied the facts, to give him up his authority. It is 
of the first character and order, in our government and country. It only awaits 
Mr. Clay's denial, when the whole subject will be brought to issue before the 
public. I make this communication to you on many accounts — but especially as 
I understand Mr. Clay is to call on you this morning, and to pass an hour or two 
with you, on his way down the river from Pittsburg. My friend, Mr. Hollings- 
worth, of this place, has seen the general's letter. He will bear to me any com- 
munication from you, which, as it is all a public matter, I shall be glad may be 
made in writing. 

"I am, dear sir, most respectfully, your obedient servant, 

" Carter Beverlet. 

" Noah Zane, Esq., Wheeling," 

" To Carter Beverley, Esq. : I have received your note of this morning, by 
Mr. John Hollingsworth. I request the favor of you to send me General Jack- 
son's letter. I pledge myself to return it to you. 

"Noah Zane. 

'< June 24, 1827." 

"Wheeling, June 24, 1827. 
" Dear Sir : From what my friend, Mr. Hollingsworth, told me, after bearing 
my first letter to you of this morning, announcing to you the receipt last night of 



352 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

correspendence below, sent it to the Reporter, published at Lex- 
ington, immediately on his arrival at Ashland, where it appeared 
the 4th of July, with a communication of his own, as follows : — 

"TO THE PUBLIC. 

*' On my arrival at Wheeling, on the 24th inst., I was informed, 
that Mr. Carter Beverley, then at that place, had received, the 
preceding night, by mail, a letter from General Jackson, which he 
had exhibited to several persons, and left with my friend. Colonel 
Noah Zane, for my perusal, and which, I was told, formed a sub- 
ject of general conversation, and had produced much excitement 
in the town. The captain of the Raindeer, having kindly detained 
his steamboat for my accommodation, and unwilling longer to delay 
his departure, I had only time to obtain a hasty, but I believe a 
correct copy, of the letter, and I now seize the first moment, after 
my arrival at home, to present it to the public, together with a copy 
of another letter addressed by Mr. Beverley to Col. Zane. 

"I purposely forbear at this time, to make several comments, 
which these documents authorize, and confine myself to a notice 

General Jackson's letter to me, under date of the 6th instant, and from your sub- 
sequent message by him to me, requesting a view of the letter, I fully calculated 
upon a meeting with Mr. Clay at your house. It appears, however, that he is 
gone ; and, from what you since said to Mr. H., that he denies the whole of the 
charges alleged in the general's letter against Mr. Adams and himself. It 
did not at all occur to me, upon your application for the letter, that a copy would 
be taken of it, without my special concurrence. It appears, however, that you 
have taken one. I hope you do not purpose to make any use of it, contrary to the 
usual and established custom in such cases. It is a document of my own, loaned 
to you in the most perfect confidence; and therefore, I presume, ought to be so 
regarded. You will oblige me by returning the letter by Mr. Hollingsworth ; and 
agreeable to usage, I trust Mr. Clay's denial to you, will be communicated tome, 
in writing, under your signature. The whole will now be made immediately pub- 
lic. This, I conceive is due to General Jackson and myself, and is called for by 
the respect we all owe to the community. 

" I am, dear sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

" Caktek Beverley. 
" Noah Zane, Esq., Wheeling." 

MR. HOLLINGSWORTH'S CERTIFICATE. 

" I do hereby certify, that Mr. Carter Beverley, now at this place, called upon 
me, and asked the favor of me to wait upon Noah Zane, Esq., of this place, yes- 
terday morning, with a letter from him, announcing his having received, the night 
before, a letter from General Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee, confirming the sub- 
stance of his letter published in Fayetteville, N. C. I accordingly waited on Mr. 
Zane, and delivered Mr. Beverley's letter. Mr. Zane then wrote a note by me to 
Mr. Beverley, requesting a loan of General Jackson's letter. Mr. Beverley hesi- 
tated, but delivered me the letter, which I handed over to Mr. Zane. Mr. Zane 
took the letter, and left his house. Mr. Beverley, after some time, knowing that 
Mr. Clay was there, apprehended that they were copying the letter, as it had 
been kept so long from him. He then requested me to go to Mr. Zane, and avert 
such a progress. I did so; but Mr. Zane refused to restore the letter, until he 
had copied it. Two copies were taken, one of which Mr. Clay got, and the other 
was retained by Mr. Clay's friends in this place. 

" Given under my hand, this 25th day of June, 1827, at Wheeling, Virginia. 

« Jno. Hollingsworth." 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 353 

of the charges which General Jackson has brought forward in his 
letter. 

•' These charges are 1st, that my friends in Congress, early in 
January, 1825, proposed to him, that, if he would say, or permit 
any of his confidential friends to say. that, in case he was elected 
president, Mr. Adams should not be continued secretary of state, 
by a complete union of myself and my friends, we would put an 
end to the presidential contest in one hour — and 2d, that the 
above proposal was ma^e to General Jackson, through a dis- 
tinguished member of Congress, of high standing, with my privity 
and consent. 

" To the latter charge, I oppose a direct, unqualified, and in- 
dignant denial. I neither made, nor authorized, nor knew of any 
proposition whatever, to either of the three candidates, who were 
returned to the house of representatives, at the last presidential 
election, or to the friends of either of them, for the purpose of in- 
fluencing the result of the election, or for any other purpose. And 
all allegations, intimations, and inuendoes, that my vote, on that 
occasion, was offered to be given, or was in fact given, in consid- 
eration of any stipulation or understanding, express or implied, 
direct or indirect, written or verbal ; that I was, or that any other 
person was not, to be appointed secretary of state ; or that I was, 
in any other manner, to be personally benefited, are devoid of all 
truth, and destitute of any foundation whatever. And I firmly and 
solemnly believe, that the first of the two above-mentioned charges, 
is alike untrue and groundless. But if — contrary to my full belief 
— my friends, or any of them, made any such proposition, or offer, 
as is asserted in the first charge, it was without my knowledge, 
and without my authority. 

'* The letter of General Jackson insinuates, rather than directly 
makes the further charge, that an arrangement was proposed and 
made between Mr. Adams's friends and mine, by which, in the 
event of his election, I was to be appointed secretary of state. I 
pronounce that charge also, as far as I know or believe, to be un- 
true, and without the least foundation. 

" General Jackson, having at last voluntarily placed himself in 
the attitude of my public accuser, we are now fairly at issue. I 
rejoice that a specific accusation, by a responsible accuser, has at 
length appeared, though at the distance of near two years and a 
half since the charge was first put forth through Mr. George Kre- 
mer. It will be universally admitted, that the accusation is of the 
most serious nature. Hardly any more atrocious could be pre- 
ferred against the representative of the people in his official char- 
acter. The charge in substance is, that deliberate " propositions 
of bargain" were made by my congressional friends collectively, 
through an authorized and distinguished member of Congress, to 
General Jackson ; that their object was, by these ' means of bar 



354 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

gain and corruption,' to exclude Mr. Adams from the department 
of state, or to secure my promotion to office ; and that I was privy 
and assented to those propositions, and to the employment of 
those means. 

" Such being the accusation, and the prosecutor, and the issue 
between us, I have now a right to expect, that he will substantiate 
his charges, by the exhibition of satisfactory evidence. In that 
event, there is no punishment that would exceed the measure of 
my offence. In the opposite event, what ought to be the judgment 
of the American public, is cheerfully submitted to their wisdom 
and justice. ., tt p^ ^^ 

" Lexington, 2'dth June, 1827." "^' ^^'^''' 

In answer to this, General Jackson sent forth the following 
address to the public : — 

" A letter, addressed by me to Mr. Carter Beverley, of Vir- 
ginia, has lately, without any consent, agency, or wish, on my part, 
found its way into the newspapers, accompanied by a statement 
over the signature of ' H. Clay,' contradicting and denying, not 
anything I have written, but that which he himself makes me to 
to say. It is not the interpretation given by him to my letter, but 
my own language, and my own statement, that I am called upon 
to defend, and expect to vindicate. 

" To explain the manner, in which my opinions have found 
their way into the journals of the day, seems, in the first place, to 
be due, both to the public and myself. Mr. Beverley, being on a 
visit to my house, requested to know of me, other gentlemen being 
present, whether the overtures, heretofore imputed to Mr. Clay, 
were well founded, and if I had a knowledge of any of the facts 
myself. I answered him candidly, being unable or unwilling, to 
refuse telling things I had heard, and knew to be true. A letter, 
detailing our conversation, shortly afterward obtained publicity, in 
the North Carolina Journal, printed at Fayetteville. On the 15th 
of May last, from Louisville, Kentucky, a communication was ad- 
dressed to me by Mr. Beverley, stating, what before I had not 
known ['?], that he was the writer of this Fayetteville letter. He ex- 
plained the reasons for his having repeated the conversation, and 
requested to be informed, if in anything he had misquoted, or mis- 
conceived my meaning. 

" Under such circumstances, concealment and silence might 
have seemed mere affectation, or indeed something of a different 
and even worse character. Publicity having been given to the 
conversation, and an appeal made to me for its accuracy, I felt it 
to be due to Mr. Beverley, that nothing of fabrication should be 
imputed to him, and to myself, that what I had stated should be 
correctly understood. Accordingly, on the 6th of June, and in 
reply to his of the 15th of May, I addressed him a letter, of which 



THE GREAT CONSriRACY. 355 

the public are already possessed. How, and by what means, it 
found its way into the columns of a newspaper, Mr. Beverley has 
explained. He states to me, that he gave it into the hands of Mr. 
Noah Zane, of Wheeling, Virginia, at his own earnest request, for 
perusal, under a pledge of honor, that it should be returned, and 
with no expectation, that any copy of it was to be retained ; that, 
on his applying for and demanding the letter, it was refused to be 
restored, until two copies should be made. He proceeds to say : 
'Mr. Zane, an old and most respectable gentleman, asked the loan 
of your letter as a favor, and, contrary to all custom and propriety 
in such matters, he, in conjunction with Mr. Clay and his friends, 
took copies of it, without my knowledge or privity in any way, 
and without asking my leave to do so. Soon as I understood, 
that such was the use they were making of it, I demanded of Mr. 
Zane the letter, and remonstrated against the unprecedented course 
they were taking. He refused to restore it to me, most perempto- 
rily, until they had satisfied themselves by furnishing to Mr. Clay 
one copy, and reserving another for their own use.' 

" The original conversation referred to, and the above extract 
of a letter from Mr. Beverley, at Wheeling, dated 26th June, 1827. 
are presented to show, that I have not, as is charged, ' placed my- 
self in the attitude of a public accuser,' and that whatever publicity 
has been given to this transaction, has arisen from no agency or 
procurement of mine ; and that Mr. Clay has, in fact, himself held 
the matter up to public gaze. In doing this, he should have quoted 
what I have written accurately and fairly ; for then, the text and 
his commentary would have suited together. At present, his con- 
tradiction is a something suggested by himself, and is not contained 
in my letter. 

*' The statement contained in my letter to Mr. Beverley, is this. 
That, in January, 1825, a member of Congress, of high respecta- 
bility, visited me, and observed, ' He had been informed by the 
friends of Mr. Clay, that the friends of Mr. Adams had made 
overtures to them, saying, if Mr. Clay and his friends would unite 
in aid of the election of Mr. Adams, Mr. Clay should be secretary 
of state ; that the friends of Mr. Adams were urging as a reason, 
to induce the friends of Mr. Clay to accede to the proposition, 
that, if I were elected president, Mr. Adams would be continued 
secretary of state (inuendo, there would be no room for Kentucky) ; 
that the friends of Mr. Clay stated, the west did not want to sep- 
arate from the west ; and if I would say, or permit one of my con- 
fidential friends to say, that, in case I were elected president, Mr. 
Adams should not be continued secretary of state, by a complete 
union o( Mr. Clay and his friends, they would put an end to the 
presidential contest in one hour ; and he was of opinion it was 
right to fight such intriguers by their own weapons.' 

" This disclosure was made to me by Mr. James Buchanan, 



356 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

a member of Congress from Pennsylvania, a gentleman of the first 
respectability and intelligence. The evening before, he had com- 
municated substantially the same proposition to Major Eaton, my 
colleague in the senate, with a desire warmly manifested, that he 
should communicate with me, and ascertain my views on the sub- 
ject. This he decHned doing, suggesting to Mr. Buchanan, that 
he, as well as himself, could converse with me, and ascertain my 
opinion on the matter — though, from his knowledge of me, he 
thought he could conjecture my answer, that I would enter into no 
engagement whatever. It was the morning succeeding this inter- 
view, after Major Eaton had objected to converse with me on the 
subject, and before I had set out from my lodgings to the capitol, 
that Mr. Buchanan came to visit me, and where the conversation 
I have stated took place. The answer returned has already been 
published, and need not be here repeated. 

" To be thus approached, by a gentleman of Mr. Buchanan's 
high character and standing, with an apology proffered at the time 
for what he was about to remark to me — one, who, as I under 
stood, had always, to that moment, been on familiar and friendly 
terms with Mr. Clay, assuring me, that on certain terms and con- 
ditions being assented to on my part, then, by a union of Mr. Clay 
and his friends, they would put an end to the presidential contest 
in one hour, what other conclusion or inference was to be made, 
than that he spoke by authority, either of Mr. Clay himself, or 
some of his confidential friends ? The character of Mr. Buchanan, 
with me, forbids the idea, that he was acting on his own responsi- 
bility, or that, under any circumstances, he could have been in- 
duced to propose an arrangement, unless possessed of satisfactory 
assurances, that, if accepted, it would be carried fully into effect. 
A weak mind would seldom or ever be thus disposed to act — an 
intelligent one never. 

" Under all the circumstances, appearing at the time, I did not 
resist the impression, that Mr. Buchanan had approached me, on 
the cautiously-submitted proposition of some authorized person , 
and therefore, in giving him my answer, did request him, to say 
to Mr. Clay and his friends, what that answer had been. Whether 
the communication was made to Mr. Clay and his friends, I know 
not. This, though, I do know, that, while the opinions and course 
of Mr. Clay, as to the election, were but matter of conjecture with 
many, at and before this time, very shortly after this conversation 
took place, his and his friends' opinions became forthwith matter 
of certainty and general knowledge. Still, I have not said, nor do 
I now say, that the proposal made to me, was ' with the privity and 
consent' of Mr. Clay; neither have I said, that his friends in Con- 
gress made propositions to me. 

" These are Mr. Clay's interpretations of my letter to Mr. Bev- 
erley, and not what my letter itself contains. What I have stated 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 357 

are the facts of a conversation between myself and a me.nber of 
Congress of high respectabiUty. The conclusions and inferences 
from that conversation — the time, manner, and all the circumstan- 
ces — satisfied my mind, that it was not unauthorized. So I have 
thought, and so I still think. And yet, I again here repeat, that, 
in this supposition, I have possibly done Mr. Clay injustice. If 
he shall be able to sustain the averments he has made, and acquit 
himself of any participation and agency in the matter, I beg leave 
to assure him, that, so far from affording me pain, it will give me 
pleasure. I certainly can have no desire, that the character of my 
country, through the acts of a prominent citizen, shall rest under 
any serious imputation. For the honor of that country, I should 
gready prefer, that any inference I have made, may turn out to be 
ill founded. 

" Mr. Clay declares his great satisfaction, that this matter has at 
length been brought to light, and to public consideration. He feels 
rejoiced, that a specific accusation, by a responsible accuser, has 
at length appeared. To this a passing notice is due. 

" It must be recollected, that, in consequence of a letter from 
Mr. George Kremer, in January, 1825, an inquiry was set on foot 
in Congress, upon the application of Mr. Clay himself. 

" On this memorable occasion, of guilt imputed on the one 
hand, and innocence maintained on the other, Mr. McDuffie, it 
will be recollected, submitted for consideration to the house of 
representatives, as matter of instruction to the committee, the fol- 
lowing RESOLUTION : 

" That the said committee he instructed to inquire, whether the 
friends of Mr. Clay have hinted that they would Jight for those who 
would pay best, or anything to that effect ; and whether overtures 
were said to have been made by the friends of Adams, to the friends 
of Clay, offering him the appointment of secretary of state for his 
aid to elect Adams ; and whether the friends of Clay gave this in- 
formation to the friends of Jackson, and hinted that, if the friends 
of Jackson would offer the same price, they would close with them ; 
and whether it was said and believed, that, as a consideration for 
this abandonment of duty to his constituents. Clay was to be ap- 
pointed secretary of state ; and that the said committee be authorized 
to send for persojis and papers, and to compel the persons so sent 
for, to answer all questions, touching the subject referred, upon 
oath." 

" Now, here is a resolution, officially submitted, covering 
more than the ground of my communication to Mr. Beverley, and 
resting in connexion with an accusation publicly charged in the 
newspapers, and yet Mr. Clay, at this late period, professes to be 
rejoiced, ' that a specific accusation, by a responsible accuser, has 
at length appeared.' Certainly, more than two years ago, an ac- 



358 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

CUSER, highly respectable, and an accusation specific, were 
both before him, were both within his reach, and might have been 
met, had he been at all disposed to the interview, or rejoiced at 
the prospect of meeting an accuser. Had Mr. McDuffie believed 
the charge groundless and untrue, he is a man of too high a sense 
of honor, to have pressed upon the consideration of the commit- 
tee, an instruction clothed in the pointed phraseology that this is ; 
nor can it be inferred, that, in a matter so serious, the friends of 
Mr. Clay would have voted against this asked-for power to the 
committee. An innocent man, before an impartial tribunal, fears 
not to meet the exercise of any power, that competent authority 
gives ; and far less should he distrust that exercise, when in the 
hands of correct and honorable men. 

" Innocence never seeks for safety, through covert ways, and 
hidden ambuscades. She fights by day, and in the open plain, 
and proud in her own strength, meets her enemy fearlessly. In 
the proposition submitted by Mr. McDuffie, there was nothing to 
alarm — nothing that innocence should have doubted about. It 
was neither more, nor less, than a call of the attention of the com- 
mittee to particular inquiries, with an application for power to fer- 
ret out the truth, through an appeal to the oath of those, who 
might be called upon to depose before them. 

♦' Without documents, and unacquainted with the number of 
Mr. Clay's friends in the house, 1 can not assert, that they were in 
opposition to Mr. McDuffie's resolution. Yet, it is obvious, 
that the influence which he possessed, would have been amply 
sufficient to produce a different result, had Mr. Clay been at all 
desirous that a different one should have been produced. The 
RESOLUTION Contained strong imputations, and serious charges. 
Mr. Clay and his friends were both implicated. Can it be pre- 
sumed, under such a state of general excitement, that, if Mr. Clay 
desired it, he could not ha^-e found present and at hand, some 
friend to ask, in his behalf, that the resolution should be 
adopted, and full powers extended to the committee ? And more- 
over, can it be thought, that such an indulgence, if desired by Mr. 
Clay, or any of his friends, could or would have been denied? 
And yet it was denied, inasmuch as the resolution was rejected, 
and the power ask^d for, refused to the committee. 

" A solicitude to find ' a specific accusation, by a responsible 
accuser,' could not have been so seriously entertained then, as it 
is earnestly expressed now, or else so excellent an opportunity 
being afforded, to encounter both, both could not have been so 
earnestly regarded, so contemned, and so thrown away. A con- 
troversy with me, can no more disclose, or render apparent, Mr. 
Clay's innocence, than could the controversy placed within his 
reach two and a half years ago ; and yet, while the one was 
avoided, or at any rate not embraced with the necessitv of the 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 359 

occasion, at the prospects presented by the other exceeding joy 
seems to be manifested. Then, as now, a specific accusation, 
was before him. 

" One further remark, and I am done, with a hope that, on this 
subject, I may not be under the necessity of again appearing in the 
newspapers. In saying what I have, all the circumstances con 
sidered, I have felt, that it was due to myself, and to the public. 
My wish would have been, to avoid having anything to say, or to 
do in this matter, from an apprehension well conceived, that per- 
sons will not be wanting, who may charge whatever is done, to a 
desire to injure others, and to benefit myself. My own feelings, 
though, are of higher importance and value to me, than the opin- 
ion of those who impose censure where it is believed not to be 
deserved. I have been actuated by no such designs, nor governed 
by any such considerations. 

" The origin, the beginning of this matter, was at my own house 
and fireside — where, surely, a freeman may be permitted to speak 
on public topics, without having ascribed to him improper designs. 
I have not gone into the highways and market-places, to proclaim 
my opinions, and in this, feel that I have differed from some, who, 
even at public-dinner tables, have not scrupled to consider me a 
legitimate subject for speech, and the entertainment of the com- 
pany. And yet, for this, who has heard me complain ? No one. 
Trusting to the justice of an intelligent people, 1 have been con- 
tent to rely for security on their decision, against the countless 
assaults and slanders, which are sought so repeatedly to be palmed 
upon them, without seeking to present myself in my own defence ; 
and still less to become the ' responsible accuser' of Mr. Clay, or 
any other person. 

" Andrew Jackson. 

" Hermitage, July 18, 1827." 

This address of General Jackson " to the public" claims 
special attention for sundry weighty reasons. It opens with a 
complaint, with an imputation of dishonor, that Mr. Clay, or his 
friends — of course Mr. Clay — had obtained a copy of General 
Jackson's letter to Mr. Beverley, of the 6th of June, 1827, by 
improper means, and published it, against the wishes of the author 
and his correspondent. As Mr. Beverley's letter to General Jack 
son, of the 15th May, asking for the one of the 6th June, is not 
before the public, the reasons for the request are of course matter 
of presumption, except as they are incidentally and accidentally 
disclosed. But presumption alone might be sufficient. Who can 
doubt, that it was designed for the public ? Then where is the 
grievance or wrong? But Mr. Beverley publishes the letter him- 

VoL. I.— 22 



360 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

self, witn all haste, and says in his letter to the editor : " The 
'public mind having been extremely agitated," &c. — " I take pleas- 
ure in gratifying them with all the circumstances developed to me 
by General Jackson," &c. He does not do this by compulsion — 
^^ I take yleasurey That, it seems, was what he wanted the let- 
ter for. He says: "After being variously attacked," &c., "this 
letter from the general may be supposed a relief to me. I fee., 
indeed, highly gratified." For what reason ? Of course, in being 
able to give it to the public. Why, then, complain ? He was 
the first to pubhsh it. But he says : "It has not taken the course 
I exactly calculated upon," &c. " I have written to General 
Jackson, informing him precisely of the course and bearing of the 
subject." It would seem from this, that he had his instruc- 
tions from General Jackson how to manage it. It will 
appear from Mr. Beverley's correspondence with Mr. Zane, that 
" the whole subject was to be brought to issue before the public." 
" As it is all a public matter," &c. They wanted " a certificate 
of Mr. Clay's denial in writing," to manage the publication all in 
their own way. It did not happen " exactly" as they " calculated 
upon." They had contrived it well. " I understand Mr. Clay 
is to call on you this morning, on his way down the river." They 
despatch Mr. Hollings worth, to let Mr. Clay know, through Mr. 
Zane, what a treat they have got, and to obtain Mr. Clay's de- 
nial " in writing." They do not mean to show the letter ; but 
they ask a denial "in writing!" Is not this cool — not to say, 
impudent ? At last, discovering the awkwardness of their position, 
they send the letter down. Of course, since they had had the 
civility voluntarily to tender to Mr. Clay this agreeable intelligence 
for their own purposes — it being rightfully in his hands — he had a 
right to use it for his purposes. It was his property, by a proffer 
of the subject-matter that concerned him, and after the notice they 
had served on him, he had a right to it in its exact shape and sub- 
stance, else the notice was an insult. They send for his denial " in 
writing." Must he not know what he was to deny? And then, 
knowing they were his enemies, seeking advantage, and having had 
much experience of this conspiracy, might he not decide for him- 
self, whether he would put himself in their power — when and how 
he would deny? "I fully calculated," says Mr. Beverley in his 
second note to Mr. Zane, " upon a meeting with Mr. Clay at 
your house. It appears, however, that he is gone." Alas, gone l 
And Mr. Beverley will have no chance to take down his words, 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 361 

and publish them in his own way. " And not only one, but two 
copies" of the letter were " taken" ! Having one, they might 
multiply it to an indefinite extent. The offence as charged, there- 
fore, is very moderate. 

Who will not smile at the puerility of this complaint, as if Mr. 
Clay were not entitled to a copy of this letter, after having been 
thus addressed? It would have been very proper, if General 
Jackson had sent an apology to Mr. Clay, for the insuh done him, 
on this occasion, by his agent. To complain of Mr. Clay, was 
putting himself on a level with his employe, who doubtless tried 
to obey his instructions, but did it very awkwardly. To affect^ 
that this " letter had found its way into the newspapers, without 
his consent, agency, or wish," only shows, that when he wrote 
this address " to the public," he did not know what his agent, Mr. 
Beverley, had written to Mr. Zane, and to Mr. Green, editor of 
the Washington Telegraph : " It is all for the public," and such 
like. The evidence, that Mr. Beverley's first letter was published 
in the Fayetteville Observer, by a similar misfortune, is not so 
full. No doubt it was equally " without the consent and against 
the wishes" of General Jackson 

Speaking of the original communication to Mr. Beverley, at the 
Hermitage, on the 8th March, " before all his company," General 
Jackson says : " I answered him candidly," (in the letter of the 
6th June, it was "freely and frankly,") "being unable as unwil- 
ling, to refuse telling things I had heard, and knew to be true." 
" Knew to be true." Does he mean, it was true that he heard 
them? or that the things were true? The latter, doubtless. 
What need, then, of any further controversy ? It is pretty strong, 
certainly. It was unbecoming. It was using his authority, not 
evidence. 

General Jackson says, he did not know, that Carter Beverley 
was the author of the Fayetteville letter, till he received his letter 
of the 15th of May. Did he not know, that Carter Beverley was 
at his house on the 8th of March, asked him that question " be- 
fore all the company," and rode away to Nashville that very morn- 
ing ? All the world knew it, and Mr. Beverley, in his letter to 
Duff Green, June 25, complains bitterly of the "attacks on him, 
by those detestable, hireling, scurrilous printers of the west," on 
account of that letter. Possibly General Jackson did not read the 
western papers. It was unnecessary he should know it, to have 
secured its publication. It was morally impossible , that such a 



362 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

communication, as he " freely and frankly" made, " before all his 
company," on the Sth of March, should not be published by some 
one of them — no matter by which — nor was it important or neces 
sary, that General Jackson should know which. To have it done, 
was the important thing. The end secured, it was well enough, 
and might be very convenient, as in this instance, not to know 
who did it. This "explanation," therefore, "of the manner, in 
which his opinions found their way into the journals of the day,' 
as if it were unexpected, was an uncalled-for display. Neverthe- 
less, it might answer his purpose, as it showed how innocent he 
was. 

Mr. Beverley wanted to know of General Jackson, " if, in any- 
thing he had misquoted, or misconceived his meaning," in the 
Fayetteville letter ; and " under such circumstances, concealment 
and silence might have seemed mere affectation, or indeed some- 
thing of a different, and even of a worse character." It may not 
be perfectly obvious what this " something of a different and worse 
character," is. But that is no matter. It is this no " conceal- 
ment and silence," that challenges attention. No " concealment" 
from whom, if his letter of the 6th June, was not to he published? 
But the next sentence shows, that it was designed for publication : 
" Publicity having been given to the conversation, and an appeal 
made to me for its accuracy, I felt it to be due to Mr. Beverley — 
that nothing of fabrication should be imputed to him and to my- 
self — that what I had stated, should be correctly understood.'''' By 
whom ? The public, of course. Very well. It is an error, then, 
that it was published without General Jackson's " consent or wish." 
But the general seems very solicitous to support Mr. Beverley's 
veracity, as well as his own — "that nothing oi fabrication should 
be imputed to him, and to myself." What did he think of Mr. 
Beverley's veracity, in his penitent letter to Mr. Clay, of February 
8, 1842, when he said : " In the discharge of an act of con- 
science," &c., " I feel exceedingly desirous to relieve you, as far 
as I can, from the slander, and my own feelings from the severe 
compunction that is within me ?" 

Therefore, since the "publicity given to this transaction, has 
arisen from no agency or procurement of mine, I have not, as is 
charged, placed myself in the attitude of a public accuser'" 

But General Jackson complains of Mr. Clay, as having made a 
" statement, contradicting and denying, not anything I have writ- 
ten, but that which he himself makes me to say. ... I have not 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACy. 363 

said, nor do I now say, that the proposal made to me, was with 
the privity and consent of Mr. Clay. Neither have I said, that 
his friends in Congress made propositions to me." 

Mr. Clay's statement is as follows: "These charges are, 1, 
that my friends in Congress, early in January, 1825, proposed to 
him, that, if he would say, or permit any of his confidential friends 
to say, that, in case he was elected president, Mr. Adams should 
not be continued secretary of state, by a complete union of myself 
and my friends, we would put an end to the presidential contest 
in one hour. And, 2, that the above proposal was made to Gen- 
eral Jackson, through a distinguished member of Congress, of 
high standing, with my privity and consent." 

In the first place, it may be observed, that, when Mr. Clay pub- 
lished this statement, he, at the same time, published, side by side, 
in the Kentucky Reporter, July 4th, General Jackson's letter, to 
which his communication was a reply, and the two things went 
together all over the country. There was, therefore, no unfairness. 
If his statement was incorrect, everybody would see it, and he 
only injured himself. In the next place, he did not profess to 
quote General Jackson's language, in his statement. That stood 
by its side, in General Jackson's letter. But his object, doubtless, 
was to give what he conceived to be the substance of the charges, 
and the public, with both documents in their hands, would judge 
for themselves. So the reader of these pages can judge, having 
the same means. Doubtless, General Jackson was startled to see 
what all would believe he meant, and what was undoubtedly con- 
veyed in his letter, brought out by Mr. Clay, in the plain terms of 
his statement. The general seemed to think he was endowed with 
the faculty, or entitled to the privilege, of making these charges in 
covert language, and then of escaping from the responsibility. It 
will be seen, that his attempt to escape, was a mere cavil. Mr. 
Clay's statement brought the matter to issue, and fastened the re- 
sponsibility where it belonged. Why should General Jackson 
show this concern, and make this denial, if he was not alarmed ? 
He went much further in this address to the public, than what he 
here denies, and stated, that he " knetv these things to be true." 
Besides this, as will soon be seen, he elaborates an argument, from 
false premises, to the length of one third of his address, to prove 
them ! " Still," he says, " I have not said, nor do I now say" 
it ! He calls them " Mr. Clay's interpretations of his letter to 
Mr. Beverley !" Of course they are, and the question is, whether 



364 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

they are true and fair ? The general says, " His [Mr. Clay's] 
contradiction is a something suggested by himself, and is not 
contained in my letter." Who could say, that the contradiction 
of the letter, was a part of the letter ? The absurdity owes its 
origin to him, who so unnecessarly denied it ! But General 
Jackson himself, it seems, makes his oivn " interpretations." 
" The conclusions and inferences from that conversation [with Mr. 
Buchanan], the time, and all the circumstances, satisfied my 
mind, that it was not unauthorized. So I have thought, and so I 
still think." That a man who objects to interpretation in others, 
should claim the right to use it as his sole evidence, is rather cool. 
It was cruel in General Jackson, who had been so faithfully 
served by Mr. Buchanan in this affair, after having borne testimony 
to his being " a gentleman of the first respectability and intelli- 
gence" — " of high character and standing" — to speak of him, in 
this address, as " one, who, as I understood, had always, to that 
moment, been on familiar and friendly terms with Mr. Clay." It 
is true, he might settle this offence 'privately with Mr. Buchanan ; 
or, if necessary to his object, he might sacrifice him. It was a 
perilous position to be thrust into, and Mr. Buchanan was not a 
little surprised, as will appear from his letter to the public. There 
was another loophole of escape, for Mr. Buchanan, and not less 
for General Jackson. It was known from Mr. Buchanan's general 
urbanity, that, " being on familiar and friendly terms with Mr. 
Clay," did not necessarily imply, that he was Mr. Clay's political 
friend. Mr. Buchanan has, down to this time, been on " familiar 
and friendly terms," with many of his political opponents. It was 
manifestly important, however, at this particular juncture, that Gen- 
eral Jackson should be able to make an impression on the public 
mind, that he thought Mr. Buchanan was a poHtical friend of 
Mr. Clay, at that time, though his devotion to the general was 
doubtless as well known to him, as when he afterward sent him 
minister to Russia. It was impossible, that the politics of so 
prominent a member of Congress — of such " high character and 
standing" — and so actively and efficiently engaged for the election 
of General Jackson to the presidency, against the other candidates, 
approaching the general, and proffering confidence and aid — should 
be unknown to anybody — much less to General Jackson. Never- 
theless, when writing this address to the public, it was absolutely 
necessary to put Mr. Buchanan in a very awkward position ; though 
Mr. Green, editor of the Washington Telegraph, and occupying 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 365 

a mediate position, as a correspondent, between General Jackson 
and Mr. Buchanan, was informed by the latter, that the general 
was laboring under a mistake. 

But General Jackson says : " If he [Mr. Clay] shall be able 
to sustain the averments he has made, and acquit himself of 
any participation and agency in the matter, I beg leave to assure 
him, that, so far from affording me pain, it will give me pleasure." 
Here is betrayed the pinciple of this whole conspiracy. By the 
course of the conspirators, from beginning to end, Mr. Clay was 
doomed to prove a negative ! They seemed to consider them- 
selves entitled to say all manner of evil about Mr. Clay, but never 
regarded themselves as bound to prove it! Mr. Clay must " ac- 
quit himself r If he would do that, it would " give them pleas- 
ure !" But how can he do that, so long as there is an unprinci- 
pled villain in the land, that will give positive evidence against him ? 
Though, as it happens, such a witness has never been found. 
One witness affirming to a fact, annihilates the evidence of ten 
thousand witnesses, who could only say, they are ignorant of the 
fact. Thus was the burden of proof constantly thrown on Mr. 
Clay, when, by all rules of evidence, as recognised in any earthly 
court, it was incumbent on his accusers. Mr. Clay congratulated 
himself in the possession of General Jackson's letter of the 6th 
of June, to Mr. Beverley, on the principle, that he now had a 
♦' responsible accuser," who was bound to establish his accusations. 
But the general turns round, and coolly says, " If Mr. Clay shall 
be able to sustain his averments, and acquit himself, it will give me 
pleasure." What could surpass such effrontery ? The general 
adds : " For the honor of the country, I should greatly prefer that 
any inference [interpretation] I have made, may turn out to be 
ill-founded." 

The fundamental, vital, and all-pervading principle of this con- 
spiracy, to wit, throwing the burden of proof on the accused, is a 
most atrocious violation of law and justice, striking at the founda- 
tion of society, and putting every innocent man in the power of 
bad men ! Accusation of crime tantamount to conviction till dis- 
proved ! The accuser not responsible ! Who, then, can be 
saved ? With no little force did Mr. Clay say, in his speech at 
Lexington, July 12th, 1S27, before this matter was all out : " This 
compendious mode of administering justice, by first hanging, and 
then trying a man, however justifiable it may be, according to the 
precepts of the Jackson code, is sanctioned by no respectable sys 



366 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

tern of jurisprudence." Again, in his speech at Lewisburg, Va., 
August 30, 1826 : " It is in vain that these revilers have been 
called upon for their proofs — have been defied, and are again in- 
vited, to enter upon any mode of fair investigation and trial 
Shrinking from every impartial examination, they persevere, with 
increased zeal, in the propagation of calumny, under the hope of 
supplying, by the frequency and boldness of asseveration, the want 
of truth and the deficiency of evidence." But the following rea- 
soning of Mr. Clay, places this point in its true light : — 

" The extraordinary ground has been taken, that the accusers 
were not bound to establish by proof the guilt of their designated 
victim. In a civilized. Christian, and free community, the mon- 
strous principle has been assumed, that accusation and conviction 
are synonymous : and that the persons who deliberately bring for- 
ward an atrocious charge, are exempted from all obligations to sub- 
stantiate it ! And the pretext is, that the crime, being of a poHtical 
nature, is shrouded in darkness, and incapable of being substanti- 
ated. But is there any real difference, in this respect, between 
political and other offences ? Do not all the perpetrators of crime 
endeavor to conceal their guilt and to elude detection ? If the 
accuser of a political offence is absolved from the duty of sup- 
porting his accusation, every other accuser of offence stands 
equally absolved. Such a principle, practically carried into soci- 
ety, would subvert all harmony, peace, and tranquillity. None — 
no age, nor sex, nor profession, nor calling — would be safe against 
its baleful and overwhelming influence. It would amount to a 
universal license to universal calumny ! 

" No one has ever contended that the proof should be exclu- 
sively that of eye-witnesses, testifying from their senses positively 
and directly to the fact. Political, like other offences, may be 
established by circumstantial as well as positive evidence. But I 
do contend that some evidence, be it what it may, ought to be 
exhibited. If there be none, how do the accusers know that an 
offence has been perpetrated ? If they do know it, let us have 
the fact on which their conviction is based. I will not even assert, 
that, in public affairs, a citizen has not a right freely to express his 
opinions of public men, and to speculate upon the motives of their 
conduct. But if he chooses to promulgate opinions, let them be 
given as opiniojis. The public will correctly judge of their value 
and their grounds. No one has a right to put forth a positive 
assertion, that a political offence has been committed, unless he 
stands prepared to sustain, by satisfactory proof of some kind, its 
actual existence. 

" If he who exhibits a charge of political crime is, from its very 
nature, disabled to establish it, how much more difficult is the 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 367 

condition of the accused ? How can he exhibit negative proof 
of his innocence, if no affirmative proof of his guilt is or can be 
adduced?" 

But the greatest atrocity of this document remains to be noticed 
which, as it occupies the last third of it — full one third — will be 
the last to claim attention. Noticing Mr. Clay's expression of sat- 
isfaction, in having at last " a responsible accuser" to encounter, 
General Jackson, with manifest triumph, calls attention to Mr. 
McDuffie's " RESOLUTION," as he calls it, which he offered in 
the house of representatives, in 1825, as instructions to the com- 
mittee, then about to be appointed to inquire and report on the 
Kremer charges : — 

" Now, here is a resolution," says General Jackson, after 
citing it, " covering more than the ground of my communication 

to Mr. Beverley More than two years ago, an accuser, 

highly respectable [Mr. McDuffie], and an accusation specific, 
were both before him, were both within his reach, and might have 
been met, had he been at all disposed to the interview. Had Mr. 
McDuffie believed the charge groundless and untrue, he is a man 
of too high sense of honor, to have pressed upon the consideration 
of the committee, an instruction clothed in the pointed phraseology 
that this is ; nor can it be inferred, that, in a matter so serious, the 
friends of Mr. Clay would have voted against this asked-for power 
to the committee. An innocent man, before an impartial tribunal, 
fears not the exercise of any power, that competent authority gives ; 
zxidifar less should he distrust that exercise, when in the hands of 
correct and honorable men. Innocence never seeks for safety 
through covert ways, and hidden ambuscades. Shejights by day, 
and in the open plains, and proud of her own strength, meets her 
enemy fearlessly The resolution contained strong im- 
putations, and serious charges. Mr. Clay and his friends were 
both implicated," &c. 

After concluding this statement in other like terms, and arguing 
from it, in the most forcible and effective manner, the appeal is 
then made to the public, in substance : " Why did not Mr. Clay 
meet this accusation, from such an accuser? And why did his 
friends reject Mr. McDuffie's resolution ? " Inuendo : " Is this 
the manner of innocence ? Why did not Mr. Clay, who affects 
joy in finding an accuser in me, meet Mr. McDuffie ?" 

Will it be believed, that every part, fact, and feature, of this 
long, elaborate, and, in no small degree, effective argument, cis such, 
was false ? Not that the facts were untrue ; but the fraud con- 
sisted in misnomers. In the first place, it was not a "resolu 



368 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

TION,' as Stated, but an amendment. In the next place, Mr. 
McDuffie did not occupy the position of an " accuser," as here 
represented. In the third place, his amendment was superfluous, 
and was, no doubt, rejected by the house for that reason. 

To present the fraud in its true light, the false and the true 
should be put in contrast. The " resolution,'" of " accusations spe- 
cific," which General Jackson represented as having been prefer- 
red by McDuffie, acting in the capacity of an "accuser," stands, 
in his public address of July 18, 1827, as follows : — 

" That the said committee be instructed to inquire, whether the 
friends of Mr. Clay have hinted that they would fight for those 
who would pay best, or anything to that effect ; and whether over- 
tures were said to have been made by the friends of Adams to the 
friends of Clay, offering him the appointment of secretary of state, 
for his aid to elect Adams ; and whether the friends of Clay gave 
this information to the friends of Jackson, and hinted, that, if the 
friends of Jackson would offer the same price, they would close 
with them ; and whether it was said and believed, that, as a con- 
sideration for this abandonment of duty to his constituents, Clay 
was to be appointed secretary of state ; and that the said commit- 
tee be authorized to send for persons and papers, and to compel 
the persons so sent for, to answer all questions, touching the sub- 
ject referred to, upon oath." 

It will be seen, that the character of this sentence is entirely 
changed, when presented as an amendment to the resolution to raise 
a committee of inquiry, by adding one monosyllable, " and," at 
the beginning, and by using the quotation points where they be- 
long, to mark the extracts from Mr. Kremer's letter, which appear 
as follows : — 

— "AND that the said committee be instructed to inquire, whether 
the friends of Mr. Clay ' hiiiied that they would Jight for those who 
would pay best,' or anything to that effect ; and whether ' overtures 
were said to have been made by the friends of Adams to the friends 
of Clay, offering him the appointment of secretary of state for his aid 
to elect Adams ;' and whether ' the friends of Clay gave this infor- 
mation to the friends of Jackson, and hinted that, if the friends of 
Jackson would offer the same price, they would close with them;' 
and whether ' it was said and believed, that, as a consideration fo? 
this abandonment of duty to his constituents. Clay was to be appoint- 
ed secretary of state,'' &c. 

When the author carefully read this address of General Jack- 
son, with a view of noticing it in this work, being deceived by the 
MISNOMERS applied to this part of it, he was struck with the force 
and effectiveness of the reasoning, and could not see how it was 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 369 

possible to answer it ; and it was not till he discovered the fraud, 
that it appeared in its true light. As it constitutes the important 
point and part of the address — all the rest being as nothing — the 
effect of it on the public mind is clearly explained by this discov- 
ery. The force of the reasoning vanishes entirely, when the true 
names are applied, and the position of Mr. McDufBe, in offering 
this amendment^) is understood. All the '-'' specifications of charge''' 
contained in it, are literal extracts from Mr. Kremer's letter to the 
Columbian Observer, and the object of Mr. McDufEe, in propos- 
ing the amendment, as stated by himself, on the occasion, was 
" merely to confine the charges against the honorable speaker to 
the very words of the letter of the gentleman [Mr. Kremer] from 
Pennsylvania." *' Let me add one word [said Mr. McDufRe], to 
the friends of Mr. Clay on this floor. And there are no members 
on this floor, for whom, generally, I feel more respect. I have 
been informed, that some of his friends suppose, that the amend- 
ment I have offered, contains something which is intended to bear 
harshly upon them. Not so ; not so. My object is merely to 
confine the clferges," &c., as above cited. It should be observed, 
that the above remarks are quoted from the speech which Mr. 
McDuffie made at the time. Again, on the 31st March, 1826, more 
than a year after the above was spoken, while an amendment of 
the constitution was under debate, Mr. McDuffie said : " Now, I 
have the greatest respect for those gentlemen, who were the per- 
sonal and political friends of Mr. Clay in the late election of pres- 
ident. Next to my own personal fi-iends, there are none whom I 
estimate more highly." 

Mr. McDuffie's amendment, therefore, was not a " resolu- 
tion," and he did not stand in the attitude of an " accuser," 
as represented by General Jackson ; but his object was merely to 
confine the duties of the committee to the charges of Mr. Kremer's 
letter. The reason why the amendment did not pass, is obvious : 
It was superfluous. Every member of the house understood, that 
Mr. Kremer's charges were the sole subject of inquiry, and that 
the committee was to be raised for that purpose. There was, 
therefore, no need of the amendment, and tne house very properly 
rejected it, without even taking the yeas and nays, which were 
called for, but refused. It was not deemed of sufficient conse- 
quence, as it was a mere repetition of the charges in Mr. Kremer's 
letter, which was the very thing proposed to be sent to the com- 
mittee. The only addition was, that the evidence should be taken 



370 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

on oath, which was also superfluous, as that would be a matter of 
course. 

But General Jackson, after having set up Mr. McDufRe as the 
" accuser" of Mr. Clay — after having erected Mr. McDuffie's 
amendment into the form of " a resolution," by dropping the 
word "and" — and after having held up its "accusations specific" 
as Mr. McDuffie's, by omitting the quotation points, which would 
have shown them to be Mr. Kremer's — manifestly conveys the 
idea — declares it — (that is the great point of his argument) — that 
Mr. Clay sought to avoid, and did decline, this investigation ! So 
the public understood it at the time, and so, apparently — the au- 
thor has never seen the fraud exposed — has it been understood 
down to this moment ! So received, it was a most powerful ap- 
peal to the mind of the country ; and the impression was no doubt 
made, and left to operate most unjustly, that, notwithstanding Mr. 
Clay's formal demand for an inquiry, he shrank from it at last ! 

Who prevented the investigation? Ostensibly, Mr. Kremer, 
by refusing to stand, either as accuser or witness, in the first of 
which he had volunteered, and was bound to it, alike by honor and 
duty. But really, it was the conspirators who prevented it. Mr. 
Kremer only obeyed their instructions. And General Jackson, 
there is reason to suppose, was at the bottom of the whole. He 
prevented it, and yet accuses Mr. Clay of fleeing from it ! 

In this attempt of General Jackson — not unsuccessful — to fasten 
upon the public, by misnomers, an argument, to the prejudice of 
Mr. Clay, so utterly false and groundless, in all its parts and bear- 
ings, a very grave question arises, whether he knew it ? Whether 
it can be supposed, that a man of such prominence and sagacity, | 
who had occupied so many public stations of great responsibility, i 
both in the military and civil service — who was once a lawyer, and j 
then a judge, in Tennessee — who was a senator of the United; 
States, and at Washington, during the first hatching of this con- 
spiracy — an observer of its progress, and the only party chiefly 
interested in its success — whether, he could be ignorant, that 
this argument, which he constructed out of Mr. McDuffie's super- 
fluous amendment, bringing it to bear so forcibly on Mr. Clay, 
was UTTERLY FALSE, from beginning to end? If he was ignorant, 
it would be strange. If he was not, it is unnecessary to say what it 
proves. The fact that he changed the amendment into a " reso- 
lution," and called it such, and omitted those signs, marks of 
quotation, which indicate its identity with Mr. Kremer's letter, as 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 371 

already noticed, apparently establishes a design, which can not 
be overlooked, and which is painful to contemplate. The yet fur- 
ther fact, that he repeatedly denominates this amendment, of such 
an innocent and superfluous character, "aw accusation specific," 
coming from Mr. McDuffie, as the "accuser," and staring Mr. 
Clay in the face — from which Mr. Clay is represented to have fled 
in alarm — aggravates the atrocity of the fraud ! All this, when he 
knew, that Mr. Clay demanded an investigation of these 
very points, and sustained his demand to the last ; when he 
KNEW, that the house was disposed to prosecute it, as an act of 
justice ; when he knew, that Mr. Kremer, alias the conspirators, 
alias himself, alone prevented it ; and when (if he was attentive to 
what was going on at the time, in the house of representatives — 
and who can suppose he was inattentive?) he knew, that Mr. 
McDuffie, in offering that amendment, did not present himself in a 
hostile atthude, nor even in one of unkindness, toward Mr. Clay 
and his friends ! 

Some of the contemporaneous frauds, practised for the same end, 
are interesting and instructive items of history, one of which, of no 
mean authority, and of great solemnity, is found in No. X., of a se- 
ries of letters published in the United States Telegraph, Extra, 
Washington city, in 1828, signed by the following gentlemen, as 
the Jackson committee of correspondence at Philadelphia : Joseph 
Worrell, William Duncan, William Boyd, Henry Toland, John 
Wurts, William J. Duane (afterward secretary of the treasury un- 
der General Jackson), William J. Leiper, Charles S. Coxe, and 
Thomas M. Pettit. These letters, for the sake of form and effect, 
were addressed to John Sergeant, Manuel Eyre, Lawrence Lewis, 
C. C. Biddle, and Joseph Norris, Esquires, political opponents, 
who had happened to be the authors of a pubHc address on their 
own side. The Telegraph, Extra, in which these letters were 
published, was the weekly Jackson paper for the presidential cam- 
paign of 1828. In letter No. X., they assign, among the proofs of 
Andrew Jackson's qualifications for civil office, the following fact, 
copied in their own words : — 

" Such was the reputation which he [Andrew Jackson] estab- 
lished, upon the organization of the territory of the United States 
south of the Ohio, now called Tennessee, in May, 1790, Wash- 
ington APPOINTED him district attorney, a station which Andrew 
Jackson held, until elected to serve, in 1796, in the convention 
for forming a constitution for Tennessee. 



872 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

*' The following," say they, " is the form of the commission 
given by Washington to Andrew Jackson. We are not sure that 
the DATE is correct, but we believe it is so, and equally cor- 
rect in ALL OTHER particulars. The district south of the Ohio 
was organized under act of Congress, of May 25, 1790. Andrew 
Jackson was appointed under it : — 

" ' George Washington, president of the United States of Amer- 
ica : To all who shall see these presents, greeting : — 

" ' Know ye, that, reposing special trust and confidence in the 
integrity, ability, and learning of Andrew Jackson, of Nashville, 
of the territory of the United States, south of the Ohio, I have 
nominated, and by and with the advice of the senate, do appoint 
him attorney of the said United States, for the district of the said 
United States south of the river Ohio, and do authorize and em- 
power him to execute and fulfil the duties of that office, according 
to law, and to have and hold the same, together with all the pow- 
er, privileges, and emoluments, thereto of right appertaining, unto 
him, the said Andrew Jackson, during the pleasure of the presi- 
dent of the United States for the time being. In testimony 
whereof, I have caused these letters to be made patent, and the 
seal of the United States to be hereto affixed. Given under my 
hand, at the city of New York, the twelfth day of August, in the 
year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety. 

" ' [L. S.] [Signed.] G. Washington. 

When this document was shown to be a forgery, the apology 
made for it, in letter XVII., was, that John H. Eaton, the biogra- 
pher of General Jackson, had stated the fact; and taking it for 
granted there must have been a commission, they made out one to 
correspond, as near as they could guess, as to date and form : " We 
gave the form of a commission, copied from the original commis- 
sion of 1789, from Washington to a district attorney, giving the 
name, place, and date, as we believed they must be in the original." 
The apparent imperfection of this document, which will doubtless 
be observed by professional men, seems to indicate, that no certain 
reliance can be placed on the above assertion, that it is even a copy 
of an authorized form, though it is quite immaterial whether it be 
so or not. One would think, that the hand which drew it, should 
have paused at the words, " in the year of our Lord." It might 
be supposed enough thus to employ the name of "G. Washing- 
ton," without bringing in that of the Divine Author of the Chris- 
tian dispensation, to sanction the deed ! 



> >> 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 373 



CHAPTER XVI. 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 



The Conspirators Tried by their own Evidence. — Mr. Buchanan's Answer to Gen- 
eral Jackson. — Mr. Markley's Reply to Mr. Buchanan. — Major Eaton's Letter 
on same Subject. — Letters, of Mr. Buchanan to the United States Telegraph. — 
Extracts from Mr. Clay's Address to the Public in December, 1827. — Examina- 
tion of the Witnesses. 

No doubt, General Jackson relied upon Mr. Buchanan, as a 
political friend, to sustain him. He had named him as his only 
witness. It is probable, that the result of Mr. Beverley's manage- 
ment, at Wheeling, had, in some degree, disconcerted the general 
pla;.. In his letter to DufF Green, editor of the Telegraph, 
from that place, he says: "It has not taken the course I ex- 
actly calculated upon. I have written on to General Jackson, in- 
forming him precisely of the course and bearing of the subject." 
It has been seen, by the general's address to the public, of July 
ISth, that he was not a little vexed with the "course and bearing 
of the subject," and that he complained loudly of Mr. Clay for 
his manner of getting possession of his letter of June 6th, to Mr. 
Beverley. How they would have managed, if Mr. Clay had not 
obtained the letter, it is impossible to say; but there is sufficient 
evidence, that a profound and comprehensive portion of the plot 
was being developed. It was undoubtedly modified, and probably 
precipitated, by this accident. Hitherto General Jackson himself 
had kept behind the curtain. But this disclosure — if it may be 
called such — brought out the chieftain in full view, and enabled 
Mr. Clay to descend upon him as his accuser. Mr. Buchanan is 
the ONLY WITNESS, and is appealed to as such. It is not perhaps 
certain, how he would have spoken, in answer to this appeal, if he 
had not been influenced by a transaction yet undisclosed, in which 
he was personally concerned. He stood between two fires — the 
wrath of General Jackson, and another deposited in ashes, which 
might at any moment be raked up, and scorch him. Of this last, 



374 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

General Jackson possibly knew nothing, and therefore reckoned on 
Mr. Buchanan's aid too confidently; or, if he did know — which 
is not improbable — he still reckoned falsely. Indeed, he had no 
choice. He was compelled to invoke the aid of his friend. Mr. 
Clay had pressed him hard, and unexpectedly. They had doubt- 
less intended to steer clear of such a difficulty; but that unfortu- 
nate management at Wheeling had deranged all, and Mr. Clay had 
descended the Ohio river, with General Jackson's letter of the 6th 
June, in his pocket, to give to the public, they knew not how, or 
when. It came down upon the Hermitage like an avalanche. 
Then followed General Jackson's address to the public, the merits 
of which have been considered. It was impossible for Mr. Bu- 
chanan to avoid his destiny, and on the 8th of August, he sent to 
the Lancaster Journal the communication found in the lower mar- 
gin of this chapter,* with other documents belonging to this branch 
of the subject, which are more or less employed here as ev- 
idence, and which, carefully perused, will be found replete with 
instruction. The extracts from Mr. Clay's address to the public, 
in December, 1827, are especially commended to consideration. 

• " To the Editor of the Lancaster Journal : — 

" The Cincinnati Journal was last night placed in my hands by a friend, con- 
taining an address from General Jackson to the public, in which he announces 
me to be the member of Congress, to whom he had referred, in his letter to Mr. 
Beverley, of the fith of June last. The duty which I owe to the public, and to 
myself, now compels me to publish to the world the only conversation which I 
ever held with General Jackson, upon the subject of the last presidential election, 
prior to its termination. 

" In the month of December, 1824, a short time after the commencement of the 
session of Congress, I heard, among other rumors then in circulation, that Gen- 
eral Jackson had determined, should he be elected president, to continue Mr. Ad- 
ams secretary of state. Although I felt certain he had never intimated such an 
intention, yet I was sensible, that nothing could be better calculated, both to cool 
the ardor of his friends, and inspire his enemies with confidence, than the belief, 
that he had already selected his chief competitor for the highest office within his 
gift. I thought General Jackson owed it to himself, and to the cause in which 
his political friends were engaged, to contradict this report ; and to declare that 
he would not appoint to that office the man, however worthy he might be, who 
stood at the head of the most formidable part of his political enemies. These 
being my impressions, I addressed a letter to a confidential friend in Pennsylva- 
nia, then and still high in office, and exalted in character, and one who had ever 
been the decided advocate of General Jackson's election, requesting his opinion 
and advice upon the subject. I received his answer, dated the 27th of Decem- 
ber, 1824, upon the 29th, which is now before me, and which strengthened and 
confirmed my previous opinion. I then finally determined, either that I would 
ask General Jackson myself, or get another of his friends to ask him, whether he 
had ever declared he would appoint Mr. Adams his secretary of state ? In this 
manner, I hoped a contradiction of the report might be obtained from himself, 
and that he might probably declare it was not his intention to appoint Mr. 
Adams. 

" A short time previous to the receipt of the letter, to which I have referred, 
my friend, Mr. Markley, and myself, got into conversation, as we ver>' often did, 
both before and after, upon the subject of the presidential election, and concern- 



AND THE WITNESSES. 



375 



In all that is essential as a witness to the support of General 
Jackson — and he the only witness — Mr. Buchanan disappoints him 
UTTERLY. His evidence, so far as it goes — and it certainly goes 

ing the person who would probably be selected by General Jackson, to fill the 
office of secretary of state. I feel sincerely sorry, that I am compelled thus to 
introduce his name ; but I do so with the less reluctance, because it has already, 
without any agency of mine, found its way into the newspapers, in connexion 
with this transaction. 

" Mr. Markley adverted to the rumor, which I have mentioned, and said it was 
calculated to injure the general. He observed that Mr. Clay's friends were 
warmly attached to him, and that he thought they would endeavor to act in con- 
cert at the election ; that if they did so, they could either elect Mr. Adams or 
General Jackson, at their pleasure ; but that many of them would never agree 
to vote for the latter, if they knew he had predetermined to prefer another to 
Mr. Clay for the first office in his gift ; and that some of the friends of Mr. Ad- 
ams had already been holding out the idea, that, in case he were elected, Mr. 
Clay might probably be offered the situation of secretary of state. 

" I told Mr. Markley, that I felt confident General Jackson had never said he 
would appoint Mr. Adams secretary of state, because he was not in the habit of 
conversing upon the subject of the election ; and if he were, whatever might be 
his secret intention, he had more prudence than to make such a declaration. I 
mentioned to him, that I had been thinking, either that I would call upon the 
general myself, or get one of his other friends to do so, and thus endeavor to ob- 
tain from him a contradiction of the report, although I doubted whether he would 
hold any conversation upon the subject. 

" Mr. Markley urged me to do so ; and observed, if General Jackson had not 
determined whom he would appoint secretary of state, and should say that it 
would not be Mr. Adams, it might be of great advantage to our cause for us so 
to declare, upon his own authority. We should then be placed upon the same 
footing with the Adams men, and might fight them with their own weapons. 
That the western members would naturally prefer voting for a western man, if 
there were a probability that the claims of Mr. Clay to the second office in the 
government should be fairly estimated ; and that, if they thought proper to vote 
for General Jackson, they could soon decide the contest in his favor. 

"A short time after this conversation, on the 30th of December, 1824 (I am 
able to fix the time, not only from my own recollection, but from letters which I 
wrote on that day„ on the day following, and on the 2d of January, 1825), I 
called upon General Jackson. After the company had left him, by which I found 
him surrounded, he asked me to take a walk with him ; and, while we were 
walking together upon the street, I introduced the subject. I told him I wished 
to ask him a question in relation to the presidential election ; that I knew he was 
unwilling to converse upon the subject ; that, therefore, if he deemed the ques- 
tion improper, he might refuse to give it an answer; that my only motive in ask- 
ing it, was friendship for him, and I trusted he would excuse me for thus intro- 
ducing a subject about which I knew he wished to be silent. 

" His reply was complimentary to myself, and accompanied with a request, tha*, 
f would proceed. I then stated to him, there was a report in circulation, that he 
had determined he would appoint Mr. Adams secretary of state, in case he were 
elected president, and that I wished to ascertain from him, whether he had ever 
intimated such an intention; that he must at once perceive how injurious to his 
election such a report might be ; that no doubt there were several able and am- 
bitious men in the country, among whom I thought Mr. Clay might be included, 
who were aspiring to that office ; and, if it were believed he had already deter- 
mined to appoint his chief competitor, it mi^ht have a most unhappy effect upon 
their exertions, and those of their friends ; that, unless he had so deterinined, I 
thought this report should be promptly contradicted under his own authority. 

" I mentioned it had already probably done him some injury, and proceeded to 
relate to him the substance of the conversation I had held with Mr. Markley. 
I do not remember, whether I mentioned his name, or merely described him as a 
friend of Mr. Clay. After I had finished, the general declared, he had not the 
least objection to answer my question; that he thought well of Mr. Adams, but 
had never said, or intimated, that he would, or would not, appoint him secretary 

Vol. L— 23 



376 THE GREAT CONSPIBACY 

a good way, and proves not a little — establishes the fact, that it was 
General Jackson's, and not Mr. Clay's friends, who were busy and 
active in this sort of management, called bargaining. Nowhere 

of state ; that these were secrets he would keep to himself — he would conceal 
them from the very hairs of his head ; that if he believed his right hand then 
knew what his left would do on the subject of appointments to office, he would 
cut it off", and cast it into the fire; that if he should ever be elected president, it 
would be without solicitation, and without intrigue, on his part ; that he would 
then go into office perfectly free and untrammelled, and would be left at per- 
fect liberty to fill the offices of the government with the men, whom, at the time, 
he believed to be the ablest and the best in the country. 

" I told him, that this answer to my question was such a one as I had expected 
to receive, if he answered it at all ; and that I had not sought to obtain it for my 
own satisfaction, I then asked him, if I were at liberty to repeat his answer ? 
He said, I was at perfect liberty to do so, to any person I thought proper. I need 
scarcely remark, that I afterward availed myself of the privilege. The conver- 
sation upon this topic here ended, and in all our intercourse since, whether per- 
sonally, or in the course of our correspondence, General Jackson never once ad- 
verted to the subject, prior to the date of his letter to Mr. Beverley. 

" I do not recollect, that General Jackson told me I might repeat his answer to 
Mr. Clay and his friends ; though I should be sorry to say, he did not. The 
whole conversation being upon a public street, it might have escaped my observa 
tion. 

" A few remarks, and I trust I shall have done with this disagreeable business 
for ever. 

" I called upon General Jackson, upon the occasion which I have mentioned, 
solely as his friend, upon my individual responsibility, and not as the agent of 
Mr. Clay, or any other person. I never have been the political friend of Mr. 
Clay, since he became a candidate for the office of president, as you very well 
know. Until I saw General Jackson's letter to Mr. Beverley, of the 6th ult., and 
at the same time was informed by a letter from the editor of the United States 
Telegraph, that I was the person to whom he alluded, the conception never once 
entered my head, that he believed me to be the agent of Mr. Clay, or of his 
friends, or that I had intended to propose to him terms of any kind from them, or 
that he could have supposed me to be capable of expressing ' the opinion that it 
was right to fight such intriguers with their own weapons.' Such a supposition, 
had I entertained it, would have rendered me exceedingly unhappy, as there is no 
man upon earth, whose good opinion I more valued, than that of General Jack- 
•on. He could not, I think, have received this impression, until after Mr. Clay 
ind his friends had actually elected Mr. Adams president, and Mr. Adams had 
appointed Mr. Clay secretary of state. After these events had transpired, it may 
be readily conjectured, in what manner my communication might have led him 
into the mistake. I deeply deplore, that such has been the eflfect. 

" I owe it to my own character to make another observation. Had I ever 
known, or even suspected, that General Jackson believed I had been sent to him 
by Mr. Clay or his friends, I should immediately have corrected his erroneous 
impression ; and thus prevented the necessity for this most unpleasant explana- 
ion. When the editor of the United States Telegraph, on the 12th of October 
a?t, asked me by letter for information upon this subject, I promptly informed 
nim by the returning mail, on the 16th of that month, that I had no authority 
from Mr. Clay, or his friends, to propose any terms to General Jackson, in rela- 
tion to their votes, nor did I ever make any such proposition ; and that I trusted I 
would be as incapable of becoming a messenger upon such an occasion, as it was 
known General Jackson would be to receive such a message. I have deemed it 
necessary to make this statement, in order to remove any misconception, which 
may have been occasioned by the publication in the Telegraph, of my letter to 
the editor, dated the 11th ultimo. 

"With another remark I shall close this communication. Before I held the 
conversation with General Jackson, which I have detailed, I called upon Major 
Eaton, and requested him to ask General Jackson, whether he had ever declared, 
or intimated, that he would appoint Mr. Adams secretary of state, and expressed 
a desire that the general should say, if consistent with the truth, that he did no' 



AND THE WITNESSES. 377 

does a friend of Mr. Clay appear on the stage, according to this 
witness. It is true, he drags in his own friend, Mr. Markley, and 
tries to make him a Clay-man, for the occasion. But it will be 

intend to appoint him to that office. I believed, that such a declaration would 
have a happy influence upon the election, and I endeavored to convince him, 
that such would be the effect. The conversation between us was not so fuU, as 
that with General Jackson. The major politely declined to comply with my re- 
quest, and advised me to propound the question to the general myself, as I pos- 
sessed a fuU share of his confidence. " James Buchanan. 
"Lancaster, 8th Jugust, 1827." 

EXTRACTS FROM MR. MARELEY'S LETTER TO THE PUBLIC. 
»••••••♦ 

"That I was originally friendly to the election of General Jackson to the 
presidency, I do not deny .... I voted for him in the democratic caucus of 
1824. I subsequently, not only gave him my vote, but used my best exertions, by 
every fair and honorable means, to promote his election to the presidential chair. 
. . . Because I had been defeated by a constitutional majority, in my desire to 
have General Jaclison elected, it did not seem to me, that I was called upon to 
resist, embarrass, and overthrow, the new administration, whether it should be 
right or wrong. . . . When I ascertained that he [Mr. Adams] had taken to his 
aid such able and experienced advisers as Mr. Clay, Mr. Rush, Mr. Southard, 
and Mr. Barbour, men identified with the republican institutions of the country, 
in peace, and in war ; men who had enjoyed the confidence of the republican ad- 
ministrations of Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Madison, and Mr. Monroe ; men who had 
long acted, and were incorporated, with the great democratic family of the Union, 
I dfd not feel at liberty to doubt what would be the character of Mr. Adams's ad- 
ministration. 

• ••••••• 

" The latter end of December, 1824, I believe — but can not with absolute cer- 
tainty say — it was on the 30th, my friend, Mr. Buchanan, called to see me in the 
evening, at my boarding-house. I happened to be alone in my room. Mr. B. 
commenced by stating that he felt great solicitude for the election of General 
Jackson, and that his friends should use every honorable means to promote it — to 
which I replied, that I heartily united with liim in opinion. Mr. B. adverted to 
the rumors that were afloat, that the friends of Mr. Adams were holding out the 
idea, that, in case he should be elected, Mr. Clay would probably be offered the 
situation of secretary- of state, and that, in case General Jackson should be elect- 
ed, he would appoint or continue Mr. Adams secretary of state. I told Mr. B. I 
thought such a report was calculated to do General Jackson a great deal of inju- 
ry, and if it were not well founded, it ousht to be contradicted, and mentioned 
further, that there was great plausibility in such reports, and their receiving 
credit, particularly that which represented General Jackson as having determined, 
if he should be elected, that he would continue Mr. Adams secretary of state, in- 
asmuch as Mr. A. had been one of his ablest defenders and advocates in his 
report sustaining General Jackson against the charges, which were preferred 
against him in relation to the Seminole war. 

" Mr. Buchanan stated, that he had written to, or received a letter from, 
a mutual friend of ours in Pennsylvania, on the subject of the presidential 
election, and cabinet appointments, and that he had determined to call upon the 
general himself, or to get Major Eaton to mention to him the reports that were 
in circulation, and obtain, if he could, a contradiction of them. Mr. B. also 
asked, if I had seen Mr. Clay — and whether I had had any conversation with 
him, touchins the presidential election ? I replied, that I had seen him in the 
hous<e, but had had no conversation with him on that subject ; but said, I was 
anxious to 2et an opportunity to have a conversation with him, as I felt a great 
anxiety, that he should vote with Pennsylvania. Mr. B. replied, that no one felt 
more anxious^ for various reasons, than he did himself; that it was important, 
not only for the success of General Jackson's election, that Mr. Clay should go 
with Pennsylvania, but on account of his ulterior political prospects — declaring 
that he [Mr. B.] hoped to see Mr. Clay president of the United States, and that 
was another reason why he should like to see Mr. Clay secretary of state, in 



378 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 



seen, by his own evidence, that this function was as uncanonical, 
as General Jackson's feigning, that he verily thought Mr. Buchanan 
was a Clay-man. Both had equal reason, and the same motive. 

case General Jackson was elected ; and that, if he were certain that Mr. Clay's 
views were favorable to General Jackson's election, he would take an opportu- 
nity of talking with General Jackson on the subject, or get Major Eaton to do 
so ; that he thought, by doing so, he would confer a particular benefit oa his 
country, and that he could see nothing wrong in it. Mr. B. urged me to use no 
delay in seeing Mr. Clay. I told him I would, and accordingly called upon Mr. 
Clay, at his boarding-house, I think the evening after this conversation ; but he 
was not at his lodgings. I called to see him again, but he had some of his 
friends with him, and I had no opportunity of conversing with him, nor had I 
ever any conversation with him, until the evening of the 10th or 11th of January, 
prior to my leaving Washington for Pennsylvania, to attend the courts in Mont- 
gomery county. The conversation I then had with him, was of a very general 
character. No mention was made of cabinet appointments, and I did not ascer- 
tain Avhich of the candidates Mr. Clay would support. 

"I have no recollection of anything being said, in the conversation with Mr. 
Buchanan, about the friends of Mr. Clay moving in concert at the election. I 
however distinctly recollect, that we both expressed an anxious hope, that the 
west would not separate from Pennsylvania. I have no recollection whatever 
of having urged Mr. B. to see General Jackson, although I concurred in the pro- 
priety of his suggestion, that he should call to see him ; nor have I the faintest 
recollection of anything being said about fighting Mr. Adams's friends with 
their own weapons. If any such expressions were used, I am very certain, it 
was not by me. From the recollection I have of the conversation, to which Mr. 
Buchanan has reference, in his letter to the public, of the 8th of August last, my 
impressions are, that the object of his visit that evening was to urge the propri- 
ety of my seeing Mr. Clay, and to give him my view as to the importance of his 
identifying himself with Pennsylvania, in support of General Jackson. I enter- 
tained no doubt, that Mr. Buchanan was honestly determined, that no exertions, 
on his part, should be wanting, and that he felt confident he could speak with 
certainty, as to the great mass of General Jackson's friends, that, in case of the 
election of General Jackson, they would press upon him the appointment of Mr. 
Clay as secretary of state. 

" Mr. Buchanan concurred with me, in opinion, that Pennsylvania would pre- 
fer Mr. Clay's appointment, to that of any other person, as secretary of state, and 
from the obligation the general was under to Pennsylvania, that he would go far 
to gratify her wishes, and that, therefore, he believed the general, if elected, 
would appoint Mr. Clay. 

"I have thus given the conversation substantially, as it took place, as the one 
Mr. B. has reference to, in his letter to the public, of the 8th of August last. It 
was a conversation of a general and promiscuous character, in which we both par- 
ticipated. It is upward of two years, since that conversation took place, and con- 
sidering it of a private and confidential character, I made no minute of it, nor did 
I ever expect it would be given to the public. It is somewhat remarkable, that 
two years and more should have elapsed, Mr. Buchanan and myself boarding to- 
gether at the same house, during the last two sessions of Congress, during which 
period we had many conversations on the subject of the presidential election, as 
well as on public and private matters, yet, not once, in all that time, did my friend, 
Mr. Buchanan, ever advert to the conversation, which he has recently thought 
himself called upon to give to the public, as having taken place between us. I 
can not avoid thinking it somewhat singular, that Mr. B. should have been so 
reserved toward me, particularly as DulT Green had been furnished with a state- 
ment, in October, 1826, of what had passed between General Jackson and him- 
self; and that a statement had also been furnished to him, by Major Eaton, in 
August, 1826, as to the purport of the conversation between himself and Mr. 
Buchanan. That these movements should have taken place, and that there 
should have been no concert improperly to drag me into this business, and yet, 
that, under all these circumstances, Mr. B. should have been silent toward me, and 
that he should think proper to introduce a detailed conversation, in which he 
makes me say all, and himself little or nothing — a conversation totally unnece.«- 



AND THE WITNESSES. 379 

II is manifest, however, from these two notable documents. Gen- 
eral Jackson's and Mr. Buchanan's — not to speak of other evi- 
dences — that there was bargaining going on. These documents 

sary for the purpose of sustaining an individual, acting, as he protests he always 
»cted, on his own authority — does, to me, and probably will to the public, seem 
somewhat unaccountable. It gives me pain to think of these things, especially as 
caving emanated from a person, to whom I feel obligations of friendship, for acts 
of kindness, and in whose friendship I reposed the most unlimited confidence. 

• *•**• •» 

" It has repeatedly been stated, that I was the agent, or as Major Eaton is 
pleased to say, ' the negotiator,' of Mr. Clay, authorized to make propositions, or 
ask a pledge, of a conditional character, for the vole of Mr. Clay and his friends. 
I do now solemnly and positively declare, that the charge and insinuation are 
void of truth. I never did, either directly or indirectly, receive from Mr. Clay, 
or his friends, any intimation, which could be construed, even by political rancor, 
into such a commission, or anything even remotely approaching to it. Had any 
such agency, by any one, been tendered, I should have indignantly rejected it. I 
will go further, and state, that never did I, in the course of my conversation with 
Mr. Clay, hear him say, or express a desire, that, in the event of the election of 
General Jackson, Mr. Adams, or Mr. Crawford, he should wish to be secretary 
Df state, or hold any station in the cabinet. Further, I never have, to any one, 
at any time, or on any occasion, represented myself, or wished it to be understood, 
that I was authorized to receive, or to make, overtures on the part of Mr. Clay, 
or his friends. I think proper to make this general and unqualified declaration, 
that there may not be left a loophole on which to hang a doubt, on this subject. 
I did not know, until ten days after the election of Mr. Adams, that Mr. Clay 
nad been offered the appointment of secretary of state ; and it is a well-known 
Tact, that, after he had the offer, he consulted many of his friends, whether he 
should, or should not, accept it. He told me, in a conversation he did me the 
honor to hold with me, on the subject, that the acceptance of it would not only be 
to him a sacrifice of domestic happiness, but a serious pecuniary loss. I know, 
also, that not only his immediate personal and political friends, but many of those 
who voted for other candidates, were desirous that he should accept the station, 
and urged, that his country had claims upon him, and would never see him suffer 
from devotion to her best interests. 

" I am free to acknowledge, that, at the time of the conversation between Mr. 
Buchanan and myself, my impression was, that General Jackson would be elect- 
ed ; and it was pretty generally talked of, as well as understood, among many of 
his friends, that, in the event of his election, Mr. Clay would have the offer of 
secretary of state ; and I doubt not, that I may, in common with others, have 
mentioned my opinion to my political friends. These impressions were founded 
on the belief, that the western interest would unite in General Jackson's elec- 
tion, and that, with the aid of one or two of the states in favor of Mr. Crawford, 
he would be elected. I mention these floating opinions of the day, to show, that 
I have no reserve, and that all I said, or did, I am quite willing should be known. 

" I left Washington for Pennsylvania, on the morning of the 11th or 12th of 
January, 1825, and did not return till Tuesday, the 30th of the same month, the 
day after Mr. Clay's card had appeared in the National Intelligencer. This ab- 
sence, at this critical juncture, is of itself sufficient to repel the idea, that I took 
any peculiar interest as to the arrangements dependent on who might, or might 

not, be elected president. 

• »♦•••»• 

" All that appears from the showing of Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Isaacks, so far 
as I was concerned, is, that, in common with those gentlemen, I expressed myself 
exceedingly anxious for the election of General Jackson, and, on my rwn personal 
responsibility, said and did all I could to promote it. 

" I do not recollect, that Mr. Buchanan and myself had any conversation, from 
the 30th of December, until after my return to Washington, on the 30th of Janu- 
ary, that is, for the whole month almost immediately preceding the election — du- 
ring the greater part of which time, I was more than a hundred miles from the 
Bcene of action. 



380 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

prove, first, that General Jackson was upon the stage — suppose 
merely passive. He was there. Next, they prove, that a Jack- 
son-man (Mr. Buchanan) had to do with General Jackson, on this 

" In none of the conversations, of which I have any knowledge, was there aiy- 
thing said, which had the slightest tendency to fix or trace, either corruption or 
bargain, to Mr. Adams, to General Jackson, to Mr. Crawford, or to Mr. Clay. 
All that I was able to discover among the friends of the respective candidates, was, 
a fair and honorable anxiety and zeal to promote the election of their favorite 
candidates. 

"Philip S. Makkley. 

« Philadelphia, October 30, 1827." 

MAJOR EATON TO THE PUBLIC — AN EXTRACT. 
• ••••••• 

" I can not precisely, and to a day, declare the time when Mr. Buchanan came to 
gee, and to converse with me ; but I do recollect it to have been during that week, 
on the Saturday of which the reported meeting of Mr. Clay and his friends took 
place, and when the determination was taken to support Mr. Adams. I feel quite 
satisfied, that the meeting, to which I allude, was on Saturday, the 22d of Janu- 
ary. Early in that week, Tuesday or Wednesday evening, Mr. Buchanan visited 
me. It was on the pavement, and in front of my own residence, where we con- 
versed together. A statement of our conversation, concisely drawn, was given to 
General Green, editor of the United States Telegraph, at his request, in August, 
1826, more than a year ago. It is as follows : — 

"In January, 1825, a few days before it had been known, that Mr. Clay and 
his friends had declared in favor of Mr. Adams, I was called upon by Mr. Bu- 
chanan, of Pennsylvania. He said, it was pretty well ascertained, that overtures 
were making, by the friends of Adams, on the subject of cabinet appointments ; 
that Jackson should fight them with their own weapons. He said, the opinion 
was, that Jackson would retain Adams, and that it was doing him injury ; that 
the general should state whom he would make secretary of state, and desired that 
I would name it to him. My reply was, that I was satisfied General Jacksoa 
would say nothing on the subject. Mr. Buchanan then remarked : ' Well, if he 
will merely say, he will not retain Mr. Adams, that will answer.' I replied, I 
was satisfied, General Jackson would neither say who should, nor who should 
not, be secretary of state— but that he (Mr. B.) knew him well, and might talk 
with him as well as I could. Mr. Buchanan then said, that, on the next day, be- 
fore the general went to the senate, he would call. He did so, as I afterward 
understood. 

" In this application and interview, I felt that Mr. Buchanan was acting on the 
ground of anxious solicitude for the success of General Jackson, and from a de- 
sire that nothing of stratagem and management should interpose to prevent the 
election of one for whom he felt more than common interest. I considered, that, 
in his zeal, he felt it to be right to defend the citadel against unlooked-for assaults, 
and believed, consequently, that the enemy should be met with their own weap- 
ons. He may have intended to present this as the idea and opinion of others, not 
his own. Such, indeed, may have been the case, though I can not say I so un- 
derstood him at the time. 

" I take occasion to repeat, that the conversation, as here given, at the request 
of the editor of the United States Telegraph, was aflbrded him in August, 1826, 
while he was on a visit to Tennessee. I mention this fact, because the statement 
being in his (Mr. B.'s) possession, he will be enabled to say, if the one he nas, 
and that which is here submitted, be not the same. 

" John H. Eaton. 
" Franklin Tennessee, September 12, 1827." 

MR. BUCHANAN TO THE EDITOR OF THE UNITED STATES TELEGRAPH, OCTOBER 
16, 1826 — AN EXTRACT. 

" At this distance of time, I could not, if I would, explain to you all the causes 
which induced me to hold the only conversation I ever held with General Jack- 
son, on the subject of the presidential election. It will be suflicient, however. 



AND THE WITNESSES. 381 

subject. Admit, that Mr. Buchanan was "on familiar and friendly 
terms with Mr. Clay." That is his general character with politi- 
cal opponents. He was all the better qualified, on this account, 

for your purpose, to know, that I had no authority from Mr. Clay, or his friends, 
to propose any terms to General Jackson, in relation to their votes, nor did I make 
any such proposition. I trust I would be as incapable of becoming a messenger 
on such an occasion, as it is known General Jackson would be to receive such a 
message. 

" I repeated the substance of this conversation to a few friends, at Washing- 
ton, one of whom must have communicated it to you. That person, whoever he 
may be, is entirely mistaken, in supposing the subject of it to have been what 
you allege in your letter, I must, therefore, protest against bringing that con- 
versation before the people, through the medium of the Telegraph, or any other 
newspaper. 

" The facts are before the world, that Mr. Clay and his particular friends made 
Mr. Adams president, and Clay secretary of state. The people will draw their 
own inference from such conduct, and the circumstances connected with it. They 
will judge of the cause from the effect." 

FROM THE UNITED STATES TELEGRAPH, JtJLY, 1827. 

" All that the public will require of General Jackson, is, that he shall give the 
name of his distinguished friend, through whom the views of Mr. Clay's friends 
were communicated to him. Immediately upon the receipt of General Jackson's 
letter to Mr. Beverley, we enclosed a copy of it to that distinguished member of 
Congress, and received the following reply : — 

" ' , July 16, 1827. 

" ' Dear Sir : I received yours of the 30th ultimo, on the morning of the 5th 
instant. In answer to it, I can only, at present, refer you to my answer to yours 
of the 12th of October last. I have a very distinct recollection of the only con- 
versation I ever held with General Jackson, concerning the last presidential 
election, prior to its termination, and when compelled to disclose it, I need not 
say, that I will speak the truth. 

" ' Everything in this state [Pennsylvania], at present, looks well for the general. 
We have been making great exertions in his behalf. The character of the pro- 
posed convention of states at Harrisburg, seems now to be pretty well understood, 
I hope that nothing may occur to mar his prospects here, as a doubt about the vote 
of this state, might have a serious effect against him throughout the Union. 

" ' From your friend. 



MK, clay's address TO THE PUBLIC, DECEMBER, 1827 EXTRACTS, 

• ••••••• 

" It was the policy, with which the political campaign was conducted, in the 
winter of l824-'5, by the forces of the general, in the first instance, to practise 
stratagem with my friends and me. Accordingly, the arts of persuasion and flat- 
tery were employed. But as I did not hasten to give in my adhesion, and re- 
mained most mysteriously silent, in other words, had not converted myself into a 
zealous and boisterous partisan of General Jackson, it became necessary to 
change that policy, and to substitute intimidations for blandishment. Mr. Kre- 
mer presented himself as a fit agent in this new work. He was ardent, impelled 
by a blind and infuriate zeal, and irresponsible, and possessed at least the faculty 
of clamorous vociferation. His letter to the Columbian Observer was prepared 
and he was instructed to sign and transmit it. That he was not the author of 
the letter, he has deliberately admitted to Mr. Crowningshield, former secretary 
of the navy. That he was not acquainted with its contents, that is, did not com- 
prehend the import of its terms, has been sufficiently established. To Governor 
Kent), Col. Little (who voted in the house of representatives for Gen. Jackson), 
Col. Brent, of Louisiana, and Mr. Digges, he disclaimed all intention of imputing 
anything dishonorable to me. Who was the real author of the letter published 
in the Columbian Observer, to which Mr. Kremer affixed his signature, I will not 
Undertake positively to assert. Circumstances render it highly probable, that it 
was written by Mr. Eaton, and with the knowledge of General Jackson. In re- 



382 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

for an) intermediate services. It is, moreover, proved by these 
documents, that the principle of bargaining, or what they called 
" fighting the Adams-men with their own weapons" — they having 

lation to the card of Mr. Kremer, in answer to that which I had previously in- 
serted in the National Intelligencer, I remarked in my circular to my constituents, 
that the nighi before the appearance of Mr. Kremer's, as I was voluntarily in- 
formed, Mr. Eaton, a senator from Tennessee, and the biographer of General 
Jackson (who boarded in the end of this city opposite to that in which Mr. Kre- 
mer took up his abode, a distance of about two miles and a half), was closeted 
for some time with him. This paragraph led to a correspondence between Mr. 
Eaton and myself, in the course of which, in a letter from me to him, under date 
the 31st March, 1825, I observe : ' It is proper for me to add, that I did believe, 
from your nocturnal interview with Mr. Kremer, referred to in my address, that 
you prepared or advised the publication of his card, in the guarded terms in 
which it is expressed. I should be happy, by a disavowal on your part, of the 
fact of that interview, or of its supposed object, to be able to declare, as in the 
event of such disavowal, I would take pleasure in declaring, that I have been 
mistaken in supposing that you had any agency in the composition or publication 
of that card.' No occasion can be conceived more fitting for an explicit denial of 
any participation, on the part of Mr. Eaton, in the transaction referred to. It 
was the subject of the correspondence between us, and I purposely afforded him 
an honorable opportunity of avowing or disavowing any co-operation with Mr. 
Kremer. Instead of embracing it, he does not deny the visit, nor my inference 
from it. On the contrary, he says in his letter of the 31st March, 1825: 'Sup- 
pose the fact to be, that I did visit him [Mr. Kremer] ; and suppose, too, that it 
was, as you have termed it, a nocturnal visit ; was there anything existing, that 
should have denied me this privilege ? ' 

" As Mr. Kremer asserted, that he did not write the letter to the Columbian 
Observer, and as Mr. Eaton does not deny that he wrote the card, published in 
Mr. Kremer's name, the inference is not unfair, that, having been Mr. Kremer's 
adviser and amanuensis on one occasion, he acted in the same character on the 
other. It is quite clear, that the statements in the letter to the Columbian Ob- 
server, are not made upon Mr. Kremer's own knowledge. He speaks of ' reports,' 
' rumors,' &.c. ' Overtures were said to have been made,' &c. 

" It is most probable, that these statements are founded on General Jackson's 
interpretation of the object of Mr. Buchanan's interview. How did he obtain 
the information, which was communicated to the Columbian Observer ? Upon 
the supposition, that the letter was prepared by Mr. Eaton, we can at once com- 
prehend it. He [Mr. Eaton] was perfectly apprized of all that had passed be- 
tween Mr. Buchanan and General Jackson. The coincidence of the language 
employed in the letter to the Columbian Observer, with that of General Jackson 
to Mr. Carter Beverley, is very striking, and proves, that it has a common origin. 
Mr. Kremer says : ' Overtures were said to have been made to the friends of Clay, 
offering him the appointment of secretary of state, for his aid to elect Mr. Ad- 
ams.' General Jackson says : ' He [Mr. Buchanan] said he had been informed, 
by the friends of Mr. Clay, that the friends of Mr. Adams had made overtures to 
them, saying, if Mr. Clay and his friends would unite in aid of the election of 
Mr. Adams, Mr. Clay should be secretary of state.' The variations between 
other parts of the two letters, are not greater than often occur in different narra- 
tives of the same conversation. They are not so great as those which exist in the 
accounts, which General Jackson has himself given, at diflerent times, of the 
same transaction. This will be manifest, from a comparison of Mr. Beverley's 
report of the conversation at the Hermitage, contained in his Fayette ville letter 
of the 8th March last, with General Jackson's statement of the same conversa- 
tion, in his letter to Mr. Beverley of the fith of June. Speaking of this letter, 
Mr. Beverley says, in his letter to N. Zane, Esq., that ' General Jackson asserts 
a great deal more than he told me.' 

" From the intimacy, which existed between General Jackson and Mr. Eaton, 
and from the fact, stated by them both, of the knowledge which each possessed of 
Mr. Buchanan's communication, it can not be reasonably doubted, if Mr. Eaton 
prepared Mr. Kremer's letter, that General Jackson was acquainted with this 
fact. It is worthy of particular observation, that, up to this day, as fa as I am 



AND THE WITNESSES. 383 

6rst charitably assumed, that the " Adams-men" were so emp)«)yed — 
was recognised as proper for the friends of General Jackson, in 
such a case. It is true, that Mr. Buchanan tries to make his friend, 

informed, Mr. Kremer has most carefully concealed the source, whrnce he derived 
the statements contained in his famous letter. 

" My personal acquaintance with General Jackson commenced in the fall of 
1815, at the city of Washington. Prior to that time, I had never seen him. 
Our intercourse was then friendly and cordial. He engaged to pass a week of 
the ensuing summer, at my residence in Kentucky. During that season, I received 
a letter from him, communicating his regret, that he was prevented from visiting 
me. I did not again see him, until the session of Congress, at which the events 
of the Seminole war were discussed. He arrived at Washington in the midst of 
the debate, and after the delivery, but before the publication, of the first speech, 
which I pronounced on that subject. Waiving all ceremony, I called to see him, 
intending by the visit, to evince, on my part, that no opinion, which a sense of 
duty had compelled me to express of his public conduct, ought to afl'ect our per- 
sonal intercourse. My visit was not returned, and I was subsequently told, that 
he was in the habit of indulging in the bitterest observations upon most of those — 
myself among the number — who had called in question the propriety of his mili- 
tary conduct in the Seminole war. I saw no more of him, except possibly at a 
distance, during the same winter, in this city, until the summer of the year 1819. 
Being, in that summer, on my way from New Orleans to Lexington, and travel- 
ling the same road on which he was passing, in the opposite direction, from Lex- 
ington to Nashville, we met at Lebanon, Kentucky, where I had stopped at break- 
fast. I was sitting at the door, in the shade, reading a newspaper, when the 
arrival of General Jackson and his suite, was announced. As he ascended the 
steps, and approached me, I rose and saluted him, in the most respectful manner. 
He darted by me, slightly inclining his head, and abruptly addressing me. He 
was followed by some of his suite, who stopped and conversed with me some 
time, giving me the latest information of my family. I afterward learnt, that 
General Jackson accompanied President Monroe, in a visit to my family, and par- 
took of some slight refreshment at my house. On leaving the tavern at Lebanon, 
I had occasion to go into a room, where I found General Jackson seated, reading 
a newspaper, and I retired, neither having spoken to the other, and pursued my 
journey, in company with four or five travelling companions. 

" Such was the state of our relations, at the commencement of the session of 
Congress in 1823, the interval having passed without my seeing him. Soon after 
his arrival here to attend that session, I collected from certain indications, that 
he had resolved upon a general amnesty, the benefit of which was to be extended 
to me. He became suddenly reconciled with some individuals, between whom 
and himself there had been a long-existing enmity. The greater part of the Ten- 
nessee delegation — all, I believe, except Mr. Eaton and General Cocke — called 
on me together, early in the session, for the express purpose, as I understood, of 
producing a reconciliation between us. I related in substance all of the above 
circumstances, including the meeting at Lebanon. By way of apology for this 
conduct at Lebanon, some of the gentlemen remarked, that he did not intend any 
disrespect to me, but that he was laboring under some indisposition. I stated, 
that the opinions which I had expressed in the house of representatives, in regard 
to General Jackson's military transactions, had been sincerely entertained, and 
were still h/'ld, but that, being opinions in respect to public acts, they never had 
been supposed by me to form any just occasion for private enmity between us, and 
that none had been cherished on my part. Consequently, there was, on my side, 
no obstacle to a meeting with him, and maintaining a respectful intercourse. For 
the purpose of bringing us together, the Tennessee representatives, all of whom, 
according to my recollection, boarded at Mrs. Claxton's, on Capitol Hill, gave a 
dinner, to which we were both invited, and at which, I remember, Mr. Senator 
White, then acting as a commissioner under the Florida treaty, and others, were 
present. We there met, exchanged salutations, and dined together. I retired 
from the table early, and was followed to the door by General Jackson and Mr. 
Eaton, who insisted on my taking a seat in their carriage. I rode with them, and 
Was set down at my lodgings. I was afterward invited by General Jackson to 



334 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

Mr. Markley, responsible for this sentiment; but, Mr. Markley de- 
nies it " I am very certain it was not by me ;" General Jackson 

ascribes it to Mr. Buchanan; Major Eaton, in a copy of his con- 
dine with him, where I met Mr. Adams, Mr. Calhoun, Mr, Southard, and many 
other gentlemen, chiefly members of Congress. He also dined, in company with 
fifteen or eighteen members of Congress, at my lodgings, and we frequently met, 
in the course of the winter, always respectfully addressing each other. 

"Just before I left Kentucky the succeeding fall, November, 1824, to proceed 
to Washington, a report reached Lexington, that General Jackson intended to 
take that place in his route to the city. Our friendly intercourse having been 
restored, in the manner stated, I was very desirous that he should arrive, prior to 
my departure from home, that I might ofler to him the hospitality of my house, 
and lest he might misinterpret the motive of my departure, if it preceded his arri- 
val. In this temper of mind, I think it quite possible, that I may have said, that, 
if I had been aware of his intention to pass that way, I would have written to 
him when I intended to set out, and urged him to reach Lexington before I started 
on my journey. I certainly never contemplated travelling in coK.pany with him, 
having some time before made all my arrangements for the journey with the gen- 
tleman who accompanied me, and having determined upon a route different from 
the usual one, which was taken by General Jackson. It has been affirmed, that I 
wrote to him, expressing a wish to accompany him to the city of Washington, 
and his silence would seem to imply an acquiescence in the correctness of the 
statement, if it were not put forward on his suggestion. I am quite sure, that I 
did not, at that period, write him a letter of any description ; but, if I did, I here 
express my entire assent to the publication of that or any other letter addressed to 
him by me. I do not believe I did, because I do not think that there was time, 
after I heard of his intention to come by Lexington, for a letter from me to reach 
Nashville, and an answer to be returned, before it was requisite to commence the 
journey — a punctual attendance on my part being necessary as the presiding 
officer of the house. If such a letter had been— as most undesignedly it might 
have been— written, can anything more strongly illustrate the spirit of hostility 
against me, than the unwarrantable inferences, which have been drawn from 
that assumed fact ? When I left home in November, I did not certainly know the 
electoral vote of a solitary state in the Union. Although I did not doubt the 
resuli of that in Kentucky, the returns had not come in, and the first authentic 
information which I received of the vote of any state, was that of Ohio, which 
reached me on the Kanawha, during the journey, more than two hundred mile§ 
from my residence. Whether I would be one of the three returned to the house 
of representatives, was not ascertained, until more than three weeks after I had 
reached Washington. Is it not, then, most unreasonable to suppose, if I had 
written such a letter, as has been imagined, proposing that we should travel 
together, that I could have had any object connected with the presidential elec- 
tion ? I reached Washington several days before him. Shortly after his arrival, 
he called to see me, but I was out. I returned the visit, considering it in both 
instances one of mere ceremony. I met with him but rarely during that session, 
and always, when I did see him, in company. I sought no opportunities to meet 
him, for, having mv mind unalterably fixed in its resolution not to vote for him, I 
wished to inspire "him with no hopes from me. The presidential election never 
was a topic, to which the most distant allusion was made by me, in any conversa- 
tion with him, but once, and that happened at a dinner given by the Russian min- 
ister, the late Baron Tuyll, on the 24th of December, 1824. I recollect the 
day, because it was the birthday of the late emperor, Alexander. About thirty 
gentlemen composed the party, and among them, Mr. Adams, Mr. Calhoun, General 
Jackson, and I think, Mr. Macon. Just before we passed from the drawing into 
the dining-room, a group of some eight or ten gentlemen were standing together, 
of whom General Jackson and I were a part, and internal improvement— I do not 
recollect how — became the subject of conversation. I observed to him, in the 
course of it, that, if he should be elected president, I hoped the cause would 
prosper under his administration. He r/iade some general remarks, which I will 
not undertake to state, lest I should do him injustice. 

• •• * • • • • 

" After our meeting at Lebanon, ages might have rolled away, and if we both 
continued to live, I never would have sought the renewal of any intercourse with 



AND THE WITNESSES. 385 

versatlon with Mr. Buchanan, given to the editor of the U. S. 
Telegraph, in August, 1S26, makes Mr. B. say, " that Jackson 
should Jight them [the Adams men] with their own weaporis'j'* and 
again, in his letter of September 12, 1827, he apologizes for Mr. 
Buchanan, for having said it. Anyhow, it was manifestly adopted, 
as a recognised principle, to " fight the Adams-men with their own 
weapons," it being understood to be bargaining. So that, it can 
not be disrespectful to take them on their own word, especially if 
their actions agree, whether "the Adams-men" did so or not. 
They do not pretend to impute this to their opponents on any other 
ground, than that of rumor; and so far as appears, by their own 
showing, the rumor was started and circulated by themselves. No 
evidence has ever yet been adduced, that this rumor was in 
any mouths but their own, much less that the rumor was founded 
on any facts. They have, therefore, the just credit, first, of rais- 
ing the wind, and then of spreading their own sails to the breeze. 
There was much anxiety, and great activity, in these affairs ; and 
the only persons that appear on the stage are General Jackson and 
his men. The general represents, that he was passive, in the over- 
tures made to him, and treated them with scorn and indignation; 
and appeals to Mr. Buchanan as his witness. Mr. Buchanan tes- 
tifies, that no overtures were made, and that the general treated him 
very politely. Mr. Buchanan gives a remarkable reason why, and 
how, and when General Jackson adopted the " erroneous impres- 
sion" — as Mr. B. calls it — viz., that overtures were made to him. 
He says : " He [General Jackson] could not, I think, have re- 
ceived this impression, until after Mr. Clay and his friends had 
actually elected Mr. Adams president, and Mr. Adams had ap- 
pointed Mr. Clay secretary of state. After these events had trans- 
pired, it may be readily conjectured, in what manner my communi- 
cation might have led him into the mistake. I deeply deplore, 
that such has been the effect." 

This is, surely, an unfortunate witness, who, being summoned 
into court, to help a party, and being his only help, has not only 
testified against him in every important particular, and broken 
down the last prop of his cause, but turns round and tells him, in 
open court: "Sir, you are demented. You have been made crazy 

nim. When he came to the senate, and at the commencement of the next session 
of Congress, the system of operation decided on, in respect to my friends and me, 
■was one of courteous and assiduous attention. From that, the transition was, to 
a scheme of intimidation, of which Mr. Kremer's letter is only a small part of 
the evidence." 



386 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

by disappointment. 'I deeply deplore,' that the fact is so!" 
What does the above statement amount to, less than a declaration 
of dementation? "He could not have received this impression 
till after, ''^ &c. When these events "had transpired, it may 7-ead- 
ily he conject^ired, in what manner my communication might have 
led him into this mistoJceP^ " Conjectured — in what manner.'''' 
These are words big with meaning, and no one doubts what the 
meaning is. Or, if it be equivocal, the only doubt can be, as to 
which of two meanings is to be ascribed to them — dementation or 
crime. Mr. Buchanan leaves it with the public, to determine 
which. He dare not speak either. He only says : " J^ may read- 
ily he conjectured, in what manner.''^ According to Mr. Buchan- 
an's evidence, there was no warrant for such an impression, arising 
out of the conversation between himself and General Jackson. 
The conclusion then is, that the result of the election had either 
turned the general's head, or determined him to start an accusa- 
tion, which had neither warrant, nor evidence ; or rather, to repro- 
duce the Kremer charge, which doubdess had the same origin with 
this — not to say, that it was under the same superintendence. 

It is not supposed, that Mr. Buchanan really intended to 
deal thus severely with General Jackson. But what could he 
do? He must justify his contradiction, and give a plausible 
reason for "this erroneous impression," "this mistake." He 
certainly did hit upon a plausible, and doubtless the true rea- 
son, probably in the hope, that this covert mode of expres- 
sion, which requires some thought fully to apprehend it, would not 
be seen through, either by the general, or by the public ; at least, 
that much of its force would be abated. It is unquestionably the 
greatest severity that could be invented — a killing, annihilating 
blow. What of the general's position, in his address to the pub- 
lic, of the 18th July, remained after this? 

But Mr. Biichanan's position, in this affair, claims attention. 
General Jackson no doubt supposed he was not in error, as to his 
recollection of Mr. Buchanan's having proposed to "fight such 
intriguers with their own weapons." That circumstance, in his 
view, might justly be taken, as a strong symptom, that he was not 
altogether unqualified for the present emergency. It now became 
necessary for him to support his letter to Carter Beverley, as it 
was before the public ; there was no time to get up a new under- jf 
standing; would not the man, who had proposed "to fight such 
intriguers with their own weaponf;," come up to the present crisis, 



AND THE WITNESSES. 387 

and answer all his purposes? He must risk it anyhow, and he did. 
But Mr. Buchanan had something more to fear, than the contin- 
gent effects of disappointing General Jackson, or the simple sug- 
gestion of "fighting such intriguers with their own weapons." He 
had more need of a shield against another quarter^ and he was now 
doomed to sail his bark between Scylla and Charybdis. The ad- 
dress to the public, from the Hermitage, of the 18th of July, was 
no doubt an astounding one to him. His extreme nervousness is 
betrayed throughout his answer. At one time, he crawls up, and 
crouches, as at the foot of a despot, apparently deprecating his lot, 
to say, "there is no man on earth, whose good opinion I more 
valued, than that of General Jackson;" at another, "a few re- 
marks, and I trust, I shall have done with this disagreeable subject 
for ever;" at another, he speaks of "this most unpleasant expla- 
nation;" and he solemnly avers, "I never have been the political 
friend of Mr. Clay, since he became a candidate for the presi- 
dency." But this was too well known, to require protestation, 
though there could be no harm in reminding the lord of the Hermit- 
age of the fact. But Mr. Buchanan understood his position too 
well, in some personal relalions to Mr. Clay, about these matters, 
not to vindicate him before all the world, and rescue him, so far as 
his own evidence was concerned, from this atrocious calumny. 
He had himself made proof of Mr. Clay's virtue ! 

But the manner, in which Mr. Buchanan drags Mr. Markley 
upon the stage, and the large space he makes him fill, are worthy 
of notice. Why introduce him at all? There seems to be no 
special demand for his appearance. He makes his entrance and 
exit, with every demonstration of innocence toward all parties, and 
seems not to have been very earnestly engaged, or very active, 
about anything, appertaining to this affair. He was absent from 
Washington, from the 11th or 12th of January till the 30th — 
during the most exciting time — and "does not recollect, that Mr. 
Buchanan and himself had any conversation, from the 30th De- 
cember, till after his return to Washington." It was indeed 
thought, that, in case of need, they might possibly manufacture a 
friend of Mr. Clay out of Mr. Markley, and make him the bearer 
of dishonorable overtures from Mr. Clay's friends to General 
Jackson's friends; and after Mr. Buchanan had disappointed 
them, and since Mr. B. had made use of him for his own purpo- 
ses. Major Eaton actually pitched upon him, as "the negotiator." 
But, though he might be better than nobody at all, for that impor- 



388 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

tant and indispensable function, yet it seemed rather ridiculous, to 
foist a man into this position, who had voted for General Jackson 
"in the democratic caucus of 1824;" who afterward, and to the 
last, supported him, and voted for him in the house of represent- 
atives, February 9th, 1825. It was, in fact, a failure, and to this 
day, the said bearer of overtures from Mr. Clay's friends to Gen- 
eral Jackson's friends, has never been found, unless it be in the 
person of Mr. Buchanan, as alleged by General Jackson ! The 
part which Mr. Buchanan imposes upon Mr. Markley, as his fel- 
low-laborer in the cause of General Jackson, was unfavorable to 
the support of this pretension, notwithstanding that Mr. B. in one 
rather equivocal expression, seems to squint that way. Still more 
unfortunately for this project of making Mr. Markley di friend of 
Mr. Clay, at that time, Mr. Buchanan makes him say: "Should 
General Jackson say, that it would 7iot be Mr. Adams" — whom 
he would appoint secretary of state — "it might be of great advan- 
tage to OUR cause, for us so to declare, on his authority. Wb 
should then be placed upon the same footing with the Adams- 
men," &c. It would not do for Mr. Buchanan to say, that by 
"OUR," Mr. Markley meant "your," and by "us" and "we," 
he meant "you," Jackson men; or that he (Mr. B.) meant to 
make Mr. Markley mean this. For then comes the absurdity, that 
a Clay-man is concerting with a Jackson-man, against Adams and 
Clay! 

But Mr. Buchanan had a more important personal object, in 
bringing forward Mr. Markley. He was justly annoyed with that 
part of General Jackson's missive, of July 18, which put in his 
mouth the words : " And he [Mr. Buchanan] was of opinion it 
was right to fight such intriguers with their own weapons." It 
was certainly an ingenious foil, to bring Mr. Markley into a long 
conversation with himself, and make him say this. It is true, it 
did not entirely get rid of the difficulty ; for he must at least ad- 
mit, that he quoted this expression to General Jackson, and in 
doing so, sanctioned, if he did not adopt it. General Jackson 
manifestly understood him to use the words as his own. At any 
rate, they must have been so earnestly, and so impressively uttered, 
that the general took them for his own. So Major Eaton under- 
stood him, as will be seen in the extract from his letter ; and the 
major adduces the triple evidence of his own recollections, on 
two several occasions, a year asunder, and an actual copy he made 
of them for the editor of the United States Telegraph — a quad- 



AND THE WITNESSES. 389 

rujde evidence, indeed, for one copy was sent to Mr. Buchanan 
himself, in 1826. Mr. Markley says : "If any such expressions 
were used, I am very certain it was not by me." So that here 
are three witnesses against one, two of them inclined and interested 
to favor Mr. Buchanan, if they could, while Mr. Buchanan is a 
party to the question. 

The manner, in which Mr. Buchanan introduces Mr. Markley, 
is remarkable. He seems to feel, that it requires apology. " I 
feel sincerely sorry, that I am compelled thus to introduce his 
name." By Mr. Markley's account, Mr. Buchanan ^^ called at 
his [Mr. M.'s] boarding-house, and commenced''^ this conversation, 
" by stating, that he had great solicitude," &c. But Mr. Buchanan 
does not choose to let it be known, that he called on Mr. Markley, 
and " commenced.''^ Hje says : " We got into conversation, as we 
often did," on this subject, as if it were accide?ital. Mr. Markley 
mentions circumstances; Mr. Buchanan avoids them. Mr. M. 
states, that, after Mr. B. had '* commenced,'''' he " adverted to the 
rumors." Mr. B. says, that Mr. M. " adverted to the rumor." 
This is an important point, WucA of them " called," t^AicA "com- 
menced," which " adverted." Circumstances indicate this, other 
things being equal. Circumstances show which is active, and 
which passive. It is manifest, that Mr. Buchanan is chief agent 
in these transactions — writes the letters, calls on Mr. Markley, 
Major Eaton, and General Jackson. No other person appears to 
be in motion on these errands. Mr. Buchanan does it all. It is 
somewhat singular, therefore, that Mr. Buchanan should make Mr. 
Markley chief speaker ; that he should put him forward in the 
foreground of the picture, refer all things to him, make him utter 
all the treason, consult him as an oracle, and force him to respond 
like a prophet ; that he should make him say exactly what would 
be expected from Mr. Buchanan, considering his position, zeal, 
and activity, in this affair. According to Mr. Markley, Mr. Bu- 
chanan himself said that, which Mr. Buchanan ascribes to Mr. 
Markley. Mr. Markley says with great force: " It is somewhat 
remarkable, that two years and more should have elapsed, Mr. 
Buchanan and myself boarding together at the same house, during 
the last two sessions of Congress," &c., " and yet, not once, in all 
that time, did he ever advert to the conversation, which he has 
recently thought himself called upon to give, as having taken place 
between us That he should think proper to introduce a de- 
filed conversation, in which he makes me say all, and himself little 



390 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

or nothing — a conversation totally unnecessary for the purpose of 
sustaining an individual, acting, as he protests, he always acts, on 
his own authority — does to me, and probably will to the public, 
seem somewhat unaccountable." If, indeed, Mr. Buchanan did 
introduce Mr. Markley, for the purpose of making him say, what 
he himself said — to shuffle off from his own shoulders the respon- 
sibility of the proposal " to fight the intriguers with their own 
weapons," to the shoulders of an innocent man — it was atrocious. 

But, whoever was accountable for these words, one thing is 
clear, that they originated with the friends of General Jackson, 
and were employed only by them ; and if Mr. Buchanan's state- 
ment is correct, General Jackson himself manifested no offence at 
the proposal, when used for the right side. It was the sup- 
posed and alleged bargaining on the other side, that offended him. 
Major Eaton apologizes for Mr. Buchanan's use of these terms : 
" I considered, that, in his zeal, he felt it to be right to defend the 
citadel against unlooked-for assaults, and believed consequently, 
that the enemy should be met with their own weajions.'''' The cu- 
rious reader may be further instructed, by a careful perusal of 
these documents, as cited in the lower margin of this chapter. 

Almost the entire subject-matter — certainly the structure — of Mr. 
Buchanan's letter, indicates, that the business in hand, between him 
and his friend, and between him and General Jackson, as parties 
interested, acting in concert, is hargaining on their own account ; 
and it is a singular fact, that the basis of action, proposed by Mr. 
Buchanan, to the friends of General Jackson, as openly put forth 
in this document, involves the jyfinciyle of hargaining — is bargain 
inchoate. " I thought General Jackson owed it to himself, and to 
the cause in which his political friends were engaged, to contradict 
this report," viz., " that General Jackson had determined, should 
he be elected president, to continue Mr. Adams secretary of state ; 
ajid to declare, that he would not ajjjKjint him to that office^ He 
wrote to " a confidential friend in Pennsylvania, high in office, and 
exalted in character, and received an answer, which strengthened 
and confirmed his previous opinion." Here it will be observed, 
was concert, correspondence, plan — for what end ? A reference 
to Mr. Markley's letter will show : — 

" Mr. Buchanan stated, that he had written to, and received a 
letter from, a mutual friend of ours, in Pennsylvania, on the subject 
of the presidential election, and cabinet appointments. Mr. B. 
asked, if T had seen Mr. Clay, and whether I had had any con- 



AND THE WITNESSES. 391 

versation with him, touching the presidential election. I replied, 
that I had seen him in the house, but had had no conversation 
with him on that subject ; but said, I was anxious to get an op- 
portunity to have a conversation with him, as I felt great anxiety, 
that he should vote with Pennsylvania. Mr. B. replied, that no 
one felt more anxious, for various reasons, than he did himself; 
that it was important, not only for the success of General Jackson's 
election, that Mr. Clay should go with Pennsylvania, hut on account 
of his ulterior political prospects — declaring, that he [Mr. B.'\ hoped 
to see Mr. Clay president of the United States, and that was another 
reason, why he should like to see Mr. Clay secretary of state, in 
case General Jackson was elected ; that, if he were certain, that 
Mr. Clay's views were favorable to General Jackson's election, 
he would take an opportunity of talking with General Jackson, or 
get Major Eaton to do so ; that he thought, by doing so, he would 
confer a particular benefit on the country ; and that he could see 
nothing wrong in it.'''' 

What is the obvious thing here proposed ? Why, manifestly, 
first, to get Mr. Clay to go with Pennsylvania for General Jack- 
son ; next, as a motive, to insure to him the office of secretary of 
state, as the most direct line to the presidency ; third, to arrange 
the matter with General Jackson ; and lastly, as it " would confer 
a particular benefit on the country, he could see nothing wrojig in 
it.''^ Was there ever a more barefaced plan of bargaining') 
And it will be found, that Mr. Buchanan did not fail in his part 
of duty : — that he tried General Jackson, and tried Mr. Clay ! 

But there is yet a still more remarkable disclosure, in this state- 
ment of Mr. Buchanan, in connexion with General Jackson's state- 
ments and conduct. In the general's letter to Mr. Beverley, of 
June 6, he intimates clearly, that he and Mr. Buchanan were on 
friendly terms, at the time of, and after the interview of so much 
consequence : " Therefore, his motives being pure, let me think 
as I might of the communication, my feelings toward him would 
remain unaltered." In his address to the public, of the 18th July, 
he speaks of Mr. B. as "a gendeman of the first respectability and 
intelligence — of high character and standing." — " The character 
of Mr. Buchanan with me, forbids the idea," &c. Mr. B. says: 
" His reply was complimentary to myself" — the reply to the open- 
ing of Mr. B.'s errand ; and it does not appear, that General Jack- 
son was at all out of humor with Mr. B., after he had made his 
communication in full : " After I had finished, the general declared, 
he had not the least objection to answer my question ; that he 

Vol. I.— 24 



392 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

thought well of Mr. Adams," &c. They seemed to part in mutual 
good will : " 1 told him," says Mr. B., *' that his answer to my 
question, was such a one, as I expected to receive, if he answered 
it at all." 

Mr. Clay, in his speech at Lexington, July 12, 1827, on Gen- 
eral Jackson's letter of June 6, to Carter Beverley, and before he 
knew, that the ^'distinguished member of Congress, ^^ was Mr. Bu- 
chanan, said : — 

"If he [the general] had rendered the 'distinguished member 
of Congress,' a little more distinguished, by instantly ordering him 
from his presence, and by forthwith denouncing him, and the infa- 
mous propositions he bore, to the American public, we should be 
a little better prepared to admit the claims to untarnished integ- 
rity, which the general so modestly puts forward. But, according 
to his own account, a corrupt and scandalous proposal is made to 
him ; the person who conveyed it, advises him to accept it ; and 
yet that person still retains the friendship of General Jackson, who 
is so tender of his character, that his name is carefully concealed, 
and reserved to be hereafter brought forward as a witness ! A 
man, who, if he is a member of tlie house of representatives, is 
doubly infamous — infamous for the advice which he gave, and infa- 
mous for his willingness to connive at the corruption of the body, 
of which he is a sworn member — is the credible witness, by whom 
General Jackson stands ready to establish the corruption of men, 
whose characters are never questioned !" 

It is not material to the purpose now in view, that the general's 
and Mr. B.'s accounts of this interview should agree — they do not 
agree — but the general understood Mr. B. to propose to " fight 
such intriguers with their own weapons." This the general bore 
apparently with good temper. " I then asked him," says Mr. B., 
"if I were at liberty to repeat his answer," viz., "that he had 
never said, or intimated, that he would, or would not, appoint Mr. 
Adams secretary of state. He said I was perfectly at liberty 
to do so, to any person I thought proper. I need scarcely remark, 
that I afterward availed myself of the privilege." 

It should be observed, that Mr. Buchanan had now obtained 
exactly what he wanted. He represents himself as having said to 
Mr. Markley : "I have been thinking, either, that I would call 
upon the general myself, or get one of his other friends to do so, 
and thus endeavor to obtain from him a contradiction of the report.' 
He represents Mr. Markley as saying, that such a contradiction 
" would be of great advantage to our cause ; that we should then 
be placed upon the same footing with the Adams-men, and might 



AND THE WITNESSES. 393 

fight them tvith their own weapons.^'' General Jackson had now 
made the contradiction, " that he had not said, or intimated, that 
he would appoint Mr. Adams," &c., and given leave to use it; 
and Mr. Buchanan distinctly intimates, that he did use it in good 
earnest, and to good effect: ^^ I need scarcely remark, that I after- 
ward availed myself of the privilege.''^ 

Here, then, is a bargain consummated, between General Jackson 
and Mr. Buchanan, which the general has never, in any form, 
repudiated, or denied — not even in the missive of July 18. It 
was the fundamental, the most important, the vital element of Mr. 
Buchanan's plan. He had not only obtained the authority of 
General Jackson, that the rumor, which constituted such an im- 
pediment in the way of his election, was false ; but he had obtained 
leave of the general, to use that information ; and he says, he did 
use it. According to his own account — (and General Jackson 
has never contradicted it) — he had used a long and forcible argu- 
ment with the general to obtain this information, and the consent 
to use it. He told the general, that the rumor, that he had said 
he would continue Mr. Adams secretary of state, " had already 
probably done him some injury ; that he [the general] must at once 
perceive how injurious to his election such a report might be ; that, 
no doubt, there were several able and ambitious men in the coun- 
try — among whom, I thought, Mr. Clay might be included — 
who were aspiring to that office ; that, if it were believed he had 
already determined to appoint his chief competitor, it might have 
a most unhappy effect upon their exertions, and those of their 
friends ; and that, unless he had so determined, I thought this 
report should be promptly contradicted under his own authority ^ 

All this, according to Mr. Buchanan's evidence, was said by 
him to General Jackson, ybr a declared object ; and as the general 
has never contradicted it, it may and should be believed. The 
object, as averred, was obtained. Neither has that been contra- 
dicted. Even Mr. Clay's name was mentioned, and no objec- 
tion to that, so long as it served to help the right side. The plan 
was all fixed, and the bargain closed. " You are perfectly at liberty 
to do soy The general, it seems, was convinced by the reason- 
ing; and Mr. Buchanan confesses, that he did " do so." 

It should be observed, that this bargain, and all the bargaining 
it contemplated, by the agency of Mr. Buchanan and others, was 
a different thing from that, of which General Jackson complains : 
THIS was to work for his advantage ; that for the advantage of 



394 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY 

Others ; and what is remarkable, this included Mr. Clay, as a 
prospective party. Mr. Clay was named in it, and no objection. 
And what is still more remarkable, Mr. Clay was actually 
ADDRESSED ! General Jackson, who affects to be offended, hor- 
rified, at " a proposition of bargain" from Mr. Clay, which — 
according to the evidence of his friend, and sole witness, Mr. Bu- 
chanan — existed only in his imagination, or heart and bad purpose, 
and which, according to Mr. B., was never thought of, even by 
the general, till after " the events had transpired," which it was 
alleged to have controlled — manifests perfect complacency in this 
arrangement between himself and Mr. Buchanan, which contem- 
plates a proposal, " a proposition of bargain," to Mr. Clay, and 
lends it his cheerful sanction, his unqualified approbation ! " You 
are perfectly at liberty to do so /" 

Why the general afterward became so averse to bargaining, 
and why he afterward imagined, that a different kind of bargain 
was proposed at that time, has been solved by Mr. Buchanan, with 
philosophic shrewdness, though, as before remarked, with some 
severity : — 

" He could not, I think, have received this impression, until 
after Mr. Clay and his friends had actually elected Mr. Adams 
PRESIDENT, and Mr. Adams had appointed Mr. Clay secretary 
of state. After these events had transpired, it may be readily 
conjectured, in what manner my communication might have led 
him into the mistake." 

But it would seem, that it was a good while after " these events," 
before General Jackson imbibed this " erroneous impression" — as 
Mr. Buchanan calls it — and before he fell into this " mistake." 
If that horrible " proposition of bargain" had been made to him, 
which he alleges in his letter to Mr. Beverley, and afterward iter- 
ates in his missive of July IS, "for the honor of the country," of 
which he appears to be so tender in that address, he should have 
moved for an investigation in the senate, of which he was a mem- 
ber, when Mr. Clay's nomination to the state department came 
under consideration, instead of giving it a silent negative. It was 
his solemn duty. But General Jackson was among the first, who 
eagerly pressed their congratulations on President Adams, his suc- 
cessful rival. If his charge of bargain against Messrs. Adams 
and Clay were true, and he knew it to be true, how could he thus 
play the hypocrite, knowing, as he did, that the heart and hands 
of the president were steeped in such foul corruption ? General 



jkND THE WITNESSES. 395 

Jackson attended the first levee of Mr. Adams as p/esident elect, 
while secretary of state, and told Mr. Niles, of the Register, that 
" he was satisfied with the result." He even went so far, as to 
confess to Mr. Niles, on that occasion, " that he was not fit for the 
presidential chair ; that he could not get on ; that his proper place 
was at the head of an army ;" and so on. — (See Mr. Niles's evi- 
dence, next chapter.) On the 10th of February, 1825, the day 
after his defeat, in the election of Mr. Adams, he was invited, by 
some of his political friends, to a public dinner at Washington, 
and declined, giving as his reason, that " any evidence of kindness 
and regard, such as you propose, might, by many, be viewed, as 
conveying with it exception, murmurings, and feelings of com- 
plaint, which, I sincerely hope belong to none of my friends." 
Are these, and other similar and contemporaneous acts, consistent 
with a knowledge and conviction of the truth of the charge, which 
he publicly brought against Messrs. Adams and Clay, in 1827 ? 

It will be observed, from Mr. Buchanan's letter, that he betrays 
no impression of that great passion, into which General Jackson 
affects to have fallen, at the alleged offer of bargain, viz., that he 
would see them all sunk, and sink himself, &c., before he would do 
it. On the contrary, according to Mr. Buchanan's account, it all 
went off smoothly, and most amiably. Why ? Because, accord- 
ing to Mr. Buchanan, there was no offer of bargain, and because 
they together, were concerting bargain ! Nevertheless, it will not 
do for Mr. Buchanan to dent what General Jackson asserts : " I 
do not recollect, that General Jackson told me I might repeat 
his answer to Mr. Clay and his friends ; though I should be very 
sorry [afraid?] to say, he did not." Does not every one see 
the lurking disbelief of Mr. Buchanan, as to the matter of this pas- 
sion? " The whole conversation," says he, " being upon a pub- 
lic street, it might have escaped my observation." What ! such 
a storm of the soul, of such a man, pass over unregarded ? 



3196 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 



CHAPTER XVn. 

THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

Proof of a Negative. — Mr. Clay's Position ia the Case. — The Voice of man? 

Witnesses. 

It can not but have been observed, that all that is proved on 
this subject, in the preceding chapters — and it is not small or un- 
important — is proved by General Jackson and his friends. And 
what is it ? Not a particle or shade of evidence, to support 
their charge against Mr. Clay ! But something very unexpected 
is proved. They are caught in their own trap ! Their own man- 
agement, their own talk, their own acts, their own documents, ad- 
duced against others, convict themselves ! And the more they are 
examined, the worse they appear. The very crime they charge, 
is proved to be their own, out of their own mouths ! Before a 
single witness from the other side is called to the stand, not only 
is the defendant justified, but the plaintiffs are arraigned on their 
own declaration, and the parties have changed their relative posi- 
tions ! The conspirators are henceforth doomed to act on the 
defensive ; and it is not a little singular, that they have been 
thrust into this predicament by their own acts, as accusers : 

It may not, however, be amiss, though no rules of justice can 
lawfully require it, to show what can be done in the proof of a 
negative. Innocent persons have sometimes been saved from 
unjust charges, by proof of an alibi, when they must otherwise 
have fallen. But it is not always that innocence escapes by such 
good fortune. The same is the effect of being able to prove a 
NEGATIVE, though neither law, nor justice, imposes the obligation. 
It is sometimes, however, the doom of necessity. Happily, in the 
case of the conspiracy now under consideration, there is now no 
necessity for it, inasmuch as the conspirators have so far disagreed, 
and managed their several parts with so little skill, that it was im 



THE WITNESSES. 397 

possible they should not be ultimately exposed, though successful 
in accomplishing their main and original design. 

The public have hitherto seemed to be satisfied with the result, 
that General Jackson and his coadjutors entirely failed to prove 
what they had alleged ; but it was not even thought, that they 
had actually convicted themselves of the crime which they endeav- 
ored to fasten on innocent persons. Not anticipating these dis- 
closures — before, indeed, all these materials of evidence for the 
conviction of the conspirators, had transpired — the importance of 
the subject, arising from the baseness and diabolical character of 
the plot, as well as from the extent of its influence, seemed to 
require the proof of a negative. Much of this species of evi- 
dence has, indeed, gradually transpired, from time to time, unin- 
voked — enough, amply sufficient, for the purpose. It was obvious, 
that nothing more was required, to establish a negative, than an 
appeal to those members of the western delegations, in the house 
of representatives, who voted with Mr. Clay for Mr. Adams, and 
secured his election. When the accusers refused to face the wit- 
nesses in court, on whose evidence the proof of their charges 
solely depended, it became necessary for Mr. Clay to bring them 
forward. Their evidence must be credible, from three valid con- 
siderations, independent of each other. First, they were, individ- 
ually and collectively, men of honor, having not only the confidence 
of the pubHc, but of their political opponents, as witnesses on this, 
or any other matter. The reader, probably, will not have forgot- 
ten the incidental evidence of Mr. McDuffie, in a former chapter, 
as to the character of these gentlemen, his political opponents : 
"There are no members on this floor, for whom, generally, I feel 
more respect. . . . Next to my own personal friends, there are 
none whom I estimate more highly ;" and this was said while the 
charge was pending before the house. Seco?id, it was not credible, 
that they could have been induced, e7i masse, to barter their fidelity 
as public servants, and their honor as individuals, for the sole ben- 
efit of Mr. Clay. Third, it was much more incredible, and utterly 
inconsistent with the known principles of human nature, and all 
the rules of moral evidence, that they should unanimously agree 
m falsifying themselves. Such a thing was never known. 

But, before proceeding to adduce this species of evidence, in 
proof of a negative, it may be proper to put in front of the whole 
the POSITION of Mr. Clay himself, which renders the charge per- 
fectly absurd. He was accused of aspiring to the office of secre- 



398 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

tary of state, and of bargaining for it ! The statesman who had 
decHned a seat in the senate of the United States, to be a com- 
moner in the lower house ; who, the first day that he took his seat 
there, and at the first ballot, was placed at the head of that body , 
who continued at the head of it, by biennial election, from 1811 
to 1825, without a rival, and was at that moment in the possession 
of that high dignity ; who would have been placed by Mr. Madi- 
son at the head of the armies of the United States, in the war of 
1812, if he could have been spared from the councils of the na- 
tion ; who declined successively the mission to Russia, and the 
war department, tendered to him by Mr. Madison ; who again de- 
clined the war department, the office of minister to the court of 
St. James, and all other foreign missions, out of which he had his 
choice, under Mr. Monroe ;— the statesman, who, as everybody 
knew, and who could not himself but know, whoever came to 
power, would have the first offer of the first place, or of any place 
he might choose, if it were possible for him to choose one ; who 
had been a candidate for the presidency, and who, if he had not 
been defrauded in Louisiana, and cheated in New York, would 
have been returned to the house of representatives in 1824, and 
elected president on the 9th of February, 1825 ; — the statesman, 
who was decidedly the favorite of the nation in any fair field, and 
whose talents had acquired for him a world-wide fame ; who had 
never sought office, but whom office always sought ; — such was 
the man, who was accused of selling his own vote as a represent- 
ative of the people, and bargaining away the votes of other rep- 
resentatives, for the office of secretary of state ! — an office to 
which he must descend, to fill it — which could not elevate him, 
but which would be itself elevated by such an incumbent. A 
man, whose honor was unsullied, accused of the foulest stain, 
without a motive ! If a man would sell his soul, it must be sup- 
posed that he has an object, which he, at least, thinks worthy of 
the sacrifice. If he is to be set bargaining for place, an off"er 
should be made that is equal to the price of his honor and fair 
fame. 

Soon after the Fayetteville letter appeared, in the spring of 
1827, a circular was addressed to all those members of the house 
of representatives, who voted with Mr. Clay for Mr. Adams, in 
1825, and who constituted the corps then designated " Mr. Clay's 
friends," by General Jackson and his friends, and also to other wit 



THE WITNESSES. 399 

nesses, at their respective residences, in different states of the 
Union, requesting them to communicate all they knew and he- 
liwed in regard to this matter. The points of the circular, to 
which answers were requested, were expressed in the following 
words : "If such a proposition [of bargain] were ever made by 
the friends of Mr. Clay to those of General Jackson, it must have 
been known to many persons, and the fact, therefore, may be as- 
certained. May I ask the favor of you to inform me, whether 
you know, or believe, any such proposition was ever made ? Or, 
whether conditions of any sort were made by the friends of Mr. 
Clay to any person, on a compliance with which their vote was 
made to depend?" These points of inquiry are important to be 
observed, in reading the evidence, as the answers in full are not 
given here ; but only extracts on these points. 

The answers to these inquiries, with other documents contain- 
ing evidence which transpired from time to time, will, with a few 
exceptions, be found at length, in Niles'' Register, vol. xxxiii., pp. 
296 to 314, and vol. xxxiv., pp. 306 to 312. A sufficiency of 
extracts from these documents, to answer all the purposes of truth, 
and a conviction thereof, is placed in the lower margin, at the head 
of which appear all the witnesses, who alone could establish the 
charges of the conspirators, if there had been any foundation for 
them. The request was unexpected, and they all wrote from their 
own domicils, in different parts of the country, entirely inde- 
pendent of each other, and without any possibility of concert. 
The harmony of their evidence, therefore, is the more remarkable 
and convincing.* 

• The Hon. Duncan McArthur, of the Ohio delegation. May 18, 1827, says : 
" The fact is, that the Ohio delegation — at least a large majority of them — were 
the first of Mr. Clay's friends, who came to the determination of voting for Mr. 
Adams, and that too, without having ascertained Mr. Clay's views on the subject. 
The language of some of the friends of the general, before the election, was, that 
the friends of Mr. Clay durst not vote for any man, other than General Jackson. 
This was often repeated, in a menacing manner. But, it is also true, that others 
of the general's friends used, what they no doubt conceived, more •persuasive lan- 
guage. Indeed, they appeared to be willing to make any promises, which they 
thought would induce the friends of Mr. Clay to vote for General Jackson." 

The Hon. Joseph Vance, of the Ohio delegation, July 12, 1827, says: "As 
one of the original friends of Mr. Clay, I was in the habit of free and unreserved 
conversations, both with him and his other friends, relative to that election, and I 
am bold to say, that I never heard a whisper of anything like a condition, on 
which our vote was to be given, mentioned, either by Mr. Clay himself, or any of 
his friends, at any time, or under any circumstances." Mr. Vance was out of the 
state, when the circular was first received, and answered it immediately on his 
return. 

The Hon. P. Beecher, of the Ohio delegation, May 21, 1827, says: "I do not 
know, that a friend, or friends, of Mr. Clay, ever made any proposition to the 
friends of General Jackson, respecting the election of Mr. Adams, as president, in 



400 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

The statements below, as far as that of the Hon. Mr. Brent, of 
Louisiana, include the names of all the members of the house of 
representatives, whose constituency, in their collective capacity, 

any way ; or as respecting General Jackson not putting Mr. Adams into the seat 
of secretary of state, in case he, Jackson, should be elected president. Neither 
am I acquainted with a friend of Mr. Clay, that would consent to be an agent in 
such a degrading transaction. Nor can I admit, that the friends of Mr. Clay had 
so contemptible an opinion of each other, or of Mr. Clay, as to suppose, that the 
appointment or non-appointment of any man to any otfice, would influence them 
in the discharge of an important public duty." 

The Hon. J. Sloane, of the Ohio delegation, May 9, 1827 says : " That any of the 
friends of Mr. Clay, in Congress, ever made any proposition of conditiona, on 
which their votes would depend, to the friends of General Jackson, or any other 
person, I do not believe. ... As to Mr. Clay's accepting any appointment under 
him [General Jackson], they [the friends of Mr. Clay] would most certainly have 
opposed it. It was not until some time after the choice of Mr. Adams, that they 
agreed to advise Mr. Clay to accept of the office he now holds. . . . If the disposi- 
tion of Genera] Jackson could have been judged of by the imfortunity of some of his 
congressional friends, I should have supposed, that a proposition of the kind men- 
tioned, would have been instantly closed with ; but no such propositions were ever 
made by the friends of Mr. Clay, and none such would have been accepted by them. 
I feel confident, that the whole is a vile and infamous falsehood, such as honor- 
able men would not resort to, more especially after having, upon full consultation 
and deliberate consideration, declined an investigation of the whole matter, before 
a committee of the house of representatives." 

The Hon. J. C. Wright, of the Ohio delegation, May 6, 1827, says : "I can 
only say, sincerely and unequivocally, that I do not know or believe, that any 
proposition of the kind mentioned, was ever made to the friends of General Jack- 
son, by the friends of Mr. Clay, or any of them; and that I am wholly ignorant 
of any conditions, of any sort, being proposed to any one, by the friends of Mr. 
Clay, on a compliance with which their votes were made to depend." 

The Hon. Samuel F. Vinton, of the Ohio delegation. May 27, 1827, says : 
" Having been one of the friends of Mr. Clay, who voted for Mr. Adams, I cheer- 
fully avail myself of this opportunity to say, that I have no knowledge whatever 
of the abovementioned proposition, or any other proposition, having been made to 
General Jackson, or any of his friends, by Mr. Clay, or any of his friends, as a 
condition upon which his or their vote was to be given to General Jackson for the 
presidency. . . . It was well known to my constituents, for many months previous 
to the late presidential election, that, after Mr. Clay, Mr. Adams was my next 
choice." 

The Hon. Wm. McLean, of the Ohio delegation. May 18, 1827, says: "No 
such proposition was ever made, within my knowledge, nor have I any cause to 
believe, that conditions, of any sort, were made, at any time, by the friends of Mr. 
Clay, to any person, on a compliance with which their vote was made to depend." 

The Hon. E. Whittlesey, of the Ohio delegation. May 12, 1827, says : " I do not 
know, or believe, that any proposition was ever made by any of Mr. Clay's friends, 
to those of General Jackson, on the morning of the presidential election, or any 
ether time, having any bearing on the candidate to be selected from the three 
returned to the house; nor do I know or believe, that any conditions, of any sort, 
were proposed by the friends of Mr. Clay, to any person, ' on a compliance with 
which their vote was made to depend ;' but I do believe, that the assertion made 
by General Jackson, as reported by ' a highly-respectable Virginian,' and all the 
charges of a like character, imputing, either to Mr. Adams or to Mr. Clay, or to 
their friends, any improper, inconsistent, corrupt, or fraudulent conduct, on that 
interesting and momentous occasion, are base slanders, known to be such, by those 
who put them in circulation." 

The Hon. M. Bartley, of the Ohio delegation, May 24, 1827, says: "In jus- 
tice to the general, I will say, that I do not believe he ever made the declaration 
alluded to by the writer of said letter [the Fayetteville letter], for the general 
was there when the election took place, and must inevitably have known, that 
■uch a statement would carry falsehood on the very face of it. ... I was in the 
nouse, I believe, every day of that session, at which the president was elerted, 



THE WITNESSES. 401 

were the political friends of Mr. Clay, in the presidential campaign 
of 1824, and who, with Mr. Clay, voted for Mr. Adams, the 9th 
of February, 1825, for president of the United States. The en- 

and have no hesitation in saying, that, so far from making any proposition, or 
overture, were the friends of Mr. Clay, in favor of the general, that, had the 
friends of the general made such a proposition, we would have considered it as an 
indignity offered to our integrity and understanding." 

The Hon. John Patterson, of the Ohio delegation, May 9, 1827, says: "I 
frankly state to you, that, if any such proposition as you state, was made by the 
friends of Clay, to those of General Jackson, I had no knowledge of it; and I 
was one of the friends of Clay. I therefore believe the report to be without an 
honest foundation." 

The Hon. David Trimble, of the Kentucky delegation, did not answer the cir- 
cular, till the 12th of August, 1827, having been absent. He says: ''I do not 
know, of my own knowledge, nor have I been informed by others, that otfers, 
propositions, or overtures, such as are spoken of by General Jackson, in his letter 
to Mr. Beverley [of June 6th], or similar thereto, or of any kind whatever, were 
made by Mr. Adams or his friends, to Mr. Clay or his friends ; or by Mr. Clay or 
his friends, to General Jackson or his friends. I do not know, nor do I believe, 
that Mr. Adams, or his friends, made overtures or offers, directly or indirectly, to 
Mr. Clay or his friends, to make him secretary of state, if he and his friends 
would unite in aid of the election of Mr. Adams ; nor do I know, or believe, that 
any pledge, or promise, of any kind, was made by Mr. Adams or his friends, to 
Mr. Clay or his friends, to procure his aid in the election. I never heard from 
Mr. Clay, or any of his friends, or any one else, that he was willing to vote for 
General Jackson, if the general would say, or any of his friends for him, that Mr. 
Adams should not be continued secretary of state ; nor do I know or believe, that 
Mr. Clay ever expressed a willingness, or any of his friends for him, to support or 
vote for General Jackson, if he could obtain the office of secretary of state under 
him. I do not know, nor do I believe, that any overtures or offers of any kind, 
were made by Mr. Clay or his friends, to Mr. Adams or his friends, to vote for 
him, or support him. if he would make Mr. Clay secretary of state ; or to General 
Jackson or his friends, to vote for him or support him, if he could obtain the office 
of secretary of state under him ; nor do I believe, that Mr. Clay would have 
taken office under him, if he had been elected." 

The Hon. F. Johnson, of the Kentucky delegation. May 23, 1827, says: "I 
have no hesitation in answering your inquiries. You say, ' If such a proposition 
were ever made by the friends of Mr. Clay to those of General Jackson, it must 
have been known to many persons, and the fact, therefore, may be ascertained. 
May I ask the favor of you to inform me, whether you know or believe any such 
proposition was ever made ? Or, whether conditions of any sort were made by 
the friends of Mr. Clay to any person, on a compliance with which their vote was 
made to depend ?' To the first branch of the inquiry, my answer is, that I have 
no knowledge of any such proposition, nor do I believe any such was ever made. 
To the second, I answer that I neither know, nor do I believe, that any ' condi- 
tions, of any sort, were made by the friends of Mr. Clay, to any person, on com- 
pliance with which their vote was made to depend.' " 

The Hon. Thomas Metcalf, of the Kentucky delegation, having been absent 
to Mississippi, retnrned to answer the letter to him, June 12, 1827. He says: 
" I have to state, that I never heard or thought of such a proposition, until the letter 
of the ' highly-respectable Virginian' appeared in the public prints. As one of the 
friends of Mr. Clay, I enter the most solemn protest against the right of the gen- 
eral, through his organ, the ' highly respectable Virginian,' or otherwise, to say, 
that I would have assisted in making him president, on the conditions stated. On 
the contrary, if I could have been made to believe, that General Jackson would 
not have offered to Mr. Adams the place which he had filled with so much ability 
under Mr. Monroe, that belief would have constituted in my mind a strong addi- 
tional objection to the general's success. If it is intended to impose the belief, 
that Mr. Clay's friends were desirous of obtaining that appointment for him, to 
the exclusion of Mr. Adams or otherwise, under General Jackson — as one of his 
friends, I pronounce it a base and infamous assault upon the motives and honor, so 
far as I am concerned or believe, of those who did not choose to support him for 



402 PAOOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

tire corps of " the friends of Mr. Clay," who were cognizant of 
all the facts of the case, have, therefore, here given in their evidence, 
as men of honor. Will it be said, they were interested ? And 

the presidency. In reply to your second inquiry, I have to say, that, if conditions 
of any sort were ever made by the friends of Mr. Clay, 'to any person, on a com- 
pliance with which their vote was made to depend,' I know nothing of it." 

The Hon. R. P. Letcher, of the Kentucky delegation, did not receive the letter, 
to be able to answer it, till June 26, 1827. He says : " I know of no such propo- 
sition, or intimation, nor have I a knowledge of any fact or circumstance, which 
would induce me to believe Mr. Clay's friends, or any one of them, ever made 
such a proposition to the friends of General Jackson." 

The Hon. Richard A. Buckner, of the Kentucky delegation. May 26, 1827, 
says : " In answer to your inquiries on this subject, I will remark, that I have no 
reason to believe, that any such proposition was made. Indeed, no proposition, 
of any description, relating to the election of president, was made, so far as I 
know or believe, by Mr. Clay's friends to those of General Jackson, or of any 
other person." 

The Hon. David White, of the Kentucky delegation, in an address to the pub- 
lie, dated, February 17, 1828, comes out in support of General Jackson, though he 
voted with Mr. Clay and his friends in February, 1825, for Mr. Adams. He says : 
" Any opposition I may offer to the reelection of Mr. Adams, grows out of circum- 
stances foreign from, and entirely unconnected with, his late election by the house 
of representatives. ... So far as I have been implicated, in connexion with my 
late colleagues, in the alleged management, bargain, sale, &c., I plead conscious 
innocence. That my colleagues, or either of them, were guilty of the charge, can 
not be established by me. I know of no impropriety of conduct, or impropriety 
of motive, on the part of either of them, which would authorize me to attach to 
either of them the least criminality." This, as will be seen, is from one of the 
supporters of General Jackson in 1828. 

The Hon. P. Thompson, of the Kentucky delegation, answered the inquiry, 
June 19, 1827. He says : " I know of no proposition made by the friends of Mr. 
Clay, to the friends of General Jackson, to make him president, if he would not 
select Mr. Adams for the seat of secretary, and I do not believe a proposition of 
any kind was made, and I expect if the friend of the general should ever speak on 
this subject, he would be a second Kremer." 

The Hon. John Scott, of Missouri, under date of August 2, 1827, in answer 
to the inquiry, says : " Neither Mr. Adams, nor his friends, ever made any prom- 
ises or overtures to me, nor did they hold out to me any inducements of any sort, 
kind, or character whatever, to procure me to vote for Mr. Adams. Nor did Mr. 
Adams, or any of his friends, ever say, or intimate, who would be placed at the 
head of the department of state, or any other department, in the event, that Mr. 
Adams should be elected, nor do I believe any propositions were made to Mr. Clay 
or his friends, by Mr. Adams or his friends. If there were, I know it not. ... I 
never made to General Jackson, or to any of his friends, any proposition, in refer- 
ence to the presidential election, either as regarded the appointment of Mr. Clay, 
or any other person to office, or the exclusion of Mr. Adams, or any other person 
from office. I was never spoken to by Mr. Clay, or any of his friends, about 
making any proposition to General Jackson or his friends, of any kind whatever; 
nor did I ever hear it insinuated, or hinted, that any proposition was made, or in- 
tended to be made, by Mr. Clay, or his friends, to General Jackson, or his friends, 
or to any other candidate or his friends, for or relating to the presidency, and I do 
believe, had any proposition been made, or been intended to be made by Mr. 
Clay, or his friends, from my intimacy and constant intercourse with them, I 
should have known or heard thereof.'* 

As the state of Missouri was at that time entitled to only one representative in 
the house, Mr. Scott constituted the whole delegation, and spoke for it. Hence 
the peculiar character of his evidence. 

The Hon. H. H. Gurley, one of the delegates from Louisiana, in his answer of 
July 17, 1827, says : " I have no knowledge of any propositions having been made 
by the friends of Mr. Clay, or any of them, to the friends of General Jackson, or 
to any other person, in relation to the election of president, or the proposition of 



THE WITNESSES. 403 

shall crime be permitted to triumph, by a concession of its right 
to impeach witnesses, without evidence ? Shall the murderer be 
dismissed from court, without sentence, because he chooses to say, 
that they who saw him commit the deed, are guilty of the same 
crime, and are therefore disqualified as witnesses? Such a mon- 
strous principle will doubtless be treated as it deserves. 

But there is a great mass of other negative evidence, of an inciden- 
tal, yet important character, some parts of which claim a notice here. 
They relate chiefly to Mr. Clay's permanent and uniform prefer- 
ence of Mr. Adams over General Jackson, as disclosed in conver- 
sations and letters, at sundry times, from and to sundry individuals. 
They will be found below.* 

conditions of any sort, ' on a compliance with whicl. their vote was made to de- 
pend.' I believe the charge wholly destitute of truth." 

The Hon. Wm. Brekt, another delegate from Louisiana, in a letter of the 5th 
June, 1827, says : " In allusion to the Fayetteville letter, I can not express the 
indignant feelings it excited. It is the fabrication of a desperate man, who, to 
obtain his object, dares to assert what he knows to be false. You ask me to say, 
whether I know or believe, that such a proposition was ever made, or whether 
conditions of any sort were proposed, by the friends of Mr. Clay, to any one, 
' on the compliance with which their vote was made to depend.' No hon- 
orable man can believe for a moment, that such a proposition was ever made, or 
such a condition stipulated. I was a friend of Mr. Clay throughout the contest ; I 
was in the confidence of all his friends ; and I declare to God, that I never 
heard of such things, until it was asserted by the disappointed adherents of Gen- 
eral Jackson. I am not only ignorant of any such arrangements, but do not be- 
lieve they ever existed." 

•The Hon. David Trimble, in the same letter before quoted from, for his ev- 
idence as one of the Kentucky delegation in the house of representatives, says : 
" I met with Mr. Clay at Frankfort, Kentucky, about the first of October, 1824. 
He [Mr. Clay] said, that he could not, consistently with his principles, vote for 
General Jackson, under any possible circumstances. ... I made some reference 
to the supposed difference of opinion between himself and Mr. Adams, about the 
treaty of Ghent. He said, in reply, that it had been greatly magnified by the 
friends of his competitors, for electioneering purposes ; that it ought to have no 
influence in the vote which he might be called upon to give ; that, if he was weak 
enough to allow his personal feelings to influence his public conduct, there would 
be no change in his mind on that account, because he was then upon much worse 
terms with General Jackson about the Seminole war, than he could ever be with 
Mr. Adams about the treaty of Ghent ; but that, in the selection of a chief magis- 
trate for the Union, he would endeavor to disregard all private feelings, and 
look entirely to the interests of the country, and the safety of its institutions. I 
should have thought strange of it, if Mr. Clay had voted for General Jackson, af- 
ter saying what he did." 

Col. James Davidson, treasurer of the state of Kentucky, in a letter to Mr. 
Clay, of October 20, 1827, among other things, says : " During a visit you made 
to this place [Frankfort], in the fall of 1824, you said : '/ can not conceive of any 
event, that can possibly happen, which would induce me to support the election of 
General Jackson to the presidency. For, if I had no other objection, his want of the 
necessary qualifications, would be sufficient.' Your remarks made a strong and 
lasting impression on my mind ; and when the resolutions, instructing our sena- 
tors, and requesting our representatives, in Congress, to vote for General Jackson, 
were under discussion in the house of representatives, I informed several of my 
friends, that I had had a conversation with you, on the subject, to which the res- 
olutions referred, and that I was convinced you would not support the general ; 
and to George Robertson, Esq., late speaker of the house of representatives of 
this state, I gave the substance of your remarks to me, and he concurred with me 



404: PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

As time advances, and as the passions of those ccmcerned in the 
origination, and interested in the defence and support of this con- 
spiracy, die away, by their own exit from the stage of human Ufe, 

in opinion, that you could not, consistently, under any circumstances, vote for the 
general ; and when the resolutions, above mentioned, were before the senate (in 
which I then had the honor of a seat), I opposed them, and among other views 1 
then took, I stated to that body, that all the resolutions we could pass during the 
whole session, would not induce you to abandon what you conceived to be your 
duty, and that I knew you could not concur with the majority of the legislature on 
that subject." 

The Hon. John J. Crittenden, in a letter to Mr. Clay, dated September 3, 
1827, says : " Sometime in the fall of 1824, conversing upon the subject of the 
then pending presidential election, and speaking in reference to your exclusion 
from the contest, and to your being called upon to decide and vote between the 
other candidates, who might be returned to the house of representatives, you de- 
clared, that you could not, or that it was impossible for you to, vote for General 
Jackson, in any event. . . . My impression is, that this conversation took place 
at Captain Weisiger's tavern, in this town [P'rankfort], not very long before you 
went on to Congress, in the fall preceding the last presidential election ; and that 
the declaration made by you, was elicited by some intimation that fell from me, of 
my preference for General Jackson over all other candidates except yourself." 

The Hon. J. S. Johnston, senator from Louisiana, in a letter to Mr. Clay, da- 
ted Washington, November 17, 1827, says : " I met you, for the first time, on 
your return to Washington, in December, 1824, on the Saturday or Sunday even- 
ing previous to the meeting of Congress, and at that time we had a long and 
free conversation, on t'he approaching election. I said it was still uncertain, 
whether you would receive the vote of Louisiana, and be returned as the third 
candidate. I expressed to you some solicitude about the election ; . . . that for 
the character, as well as the tranquillity, of the country, it was desirable that we 
should pass through it safely. You replied, that you would not permit the coun- 
try to be disturbed a day on your account ; that jou would not allow your name 
to interfere with the prompt decision of the question by the house. I said, if it 
becomes necessary, the country has a right to expect, and will expect, that of 
you. ... I remarked to you, that, in all probability, the contest would be finally 
reduced to Mr. Adams and General Jackson, and the conversation turned upon 
their comparative merits and qualifications, and a long discussion ensued. You 
drew a parallel between them, in a manner I thought very just and respectful to 
both. You concluded by expressing a preference for Mr. Adams, which turned 
principally on his talents, and experience in civil atfairs. . . . No fact ever came 
to my knowledge, that could, in the slightest degree, justify the charge, that has 
been exhibited. On the contrary, I know, that your opinion did not undergo any 
change, from the time I first saw you, on your return to Washington." 

The Hon. D. Bouligny, senator from Louisiana, in a note to Mr. Clay, of 
December 8, 1827, says : " I distinctly recollect, that, on the 20th of December, 
1824, which was the day of my arrival here [at Wasliington], from the state of 
Louisiana, to take my seat in the senate of the United States, I called on you the 
same evening, and in the course of a conversation, in which I informed you that 
you had lost the vote of Louisiana, I desired to know, whom you intended to vote 
for as president. You then told me, without any hesitation, that you would 
vote for Mr. Adams, in preference to General Jackson." 

The Hon. James Barbour, secretary of war, under Mr. Adams, gave the fol- 
lowing certificate, dated Washington, August 14, 1827: "I certify, that, in the 
early part of the session of Congress, '24-'5, I dined at the Columbia college, 
with General Lafayette, Mr. Clay, and others. On returning from that dinner to 
town, Mr. Clay and myself — there being no other person with us — came in the 
same hack. During the ride, our conversation turned on the then pending pres- 
idential election. I expressed myself, in the event of the contest being narrowed 
down to Mr. Adams and General Jackson, in favor of Mr. Adams ; and Mr. Clay 
expressed a coincidence of opinion." 

General Lafayette, in a letter to Mr. Clay, dated La Grange, October 10, 
1827, says : " Blessed as I have lately been, with the welcome, and conscious, as 
it is my happy lot to be, of the aflection and confidence, of all parties, and all 



i 



THE WITNESSES. 4()5 

the public, the world, will become more and more amaeed, at the 
anomalous position of the parties, judicially considered, during the 
period comprehended in the inception, hatching, ripening, execu- 

men in every party in the United States — feelings, which I most cordially recipro- 
cate — I ever have thought myself bound to avoid taking any part in local or per- 
sonal divisions^ Indeed, if I thought, that, in these matters, my influence could 
be of any avail, it should be solely exerted to deprecate — not, by far, the free re- 
publican, and full discussion of principles and candidates — biit those invidious 
danders, which — although they are happily repelled by the good sense, the can- 
dor, and, in domestic instances, by the delicacy of the American people — tend to 
give abroad incorrect and disparaging impressions. Yet, that line of conduct, 
from which I must not deviate, except in eminent cases now out of the question 
does not imply a for get fulness of facts, nor a refusal to state them occasionally. My 
remembrance concurs with your own on this point ; — that, in the latter end of De- 
cember, either before or after my visit to Annapolis, you being out of the presi- 
dential candidature, and after having expressed my abovementioned motives of for- 
bearance, I, by way of a confidential exception, allowed myself to put a simple, 
unqualified question respecting your electioneering guess, and your intended vote. 
Your answer was, that, in your opinion, the actual state of health of Mr. Craw- 
ford, had limited the contest to a choice between Mr. Adams and General Jack- 
son ; that a claim, founded on military achievements, did not meet your prefer- 
ence ; and that you had concluded to vote for Mr. Mams. Such has been if not 
the literal wording, at least the precise sense, of a conversation, which it would 
have been inconsistent for me to carrj' further, and not to keep a secret, while 
a recollection of it, to assist your memory, I should not now deny, not only to you, 
as my friend, but to any man in a similar situation." 

By the National Intelligencer, it appears, that General Lafayette went to An- 
napolis on the 16th of December, and returned on the 21st. Mr. Bouligny, as 
above, informed Mr. Clay, on the 20th, that he was " out of the presidential cari- 
didature," as General Lafayette calls it. Mr. Clay called on General Lafayette 
immediately after his return from Annapolis, and as the news from Louisiana had 
just arrived, and was of great interest, it is supposed this conversation took place 
at this time — a day or two before Christmas. 

General Call, delegate to Congress from Florida, was an intimate and ardent 
friend of General Jackson. They travelled together on their journey to Wash- 
ington, in the fall of 1824, as appears from a letter from General Jackson to Ma- 
jor Eaton (Niles's Register, vol. 28, p. 66). They made a stop at Rockville, 
Maryland, about seventeen miles from Washington, where General Call engaged 
in conversation with several gentlemen, on the approaching presidential election ; 
of whom, John Braddock, Esq., the author of the following certificate, was one : — 
" Rockville, Montgomery County [Md.], November 3, 1827. 

"In the fall of the year 1824, I saw General Call, and several other gentle- 
men, members of Congress, on their way to Washington, at a tavern in Rockville. 
They were conversing on the subject of the presidential election, and when the 
vote, which Mr. Clay would probably give, was spoken of. General Call declared, 
that the friends of General Jackson did not expect Mr. Clay to vote for them ; 
and if he did so, it would be an act of duplicity on his part. 

" John Braddock. 

"In statin? the declaration of General Call, on the subject of Mr. Clay's vote, 
I have omitted an expletive, which should have been introduced before the word 
duplicity. Save that, the foregoing is literally his language. " J. B." 

George Robertson, Esq., of Lexington, Kentucky, since chief justice of the 
state, in a note to Colonel Davidson, dated December 17, 1827, says : "In frank 
conversation with him [Mr. Clay], in September, 1824, I understood distinctly, 
that nothing could ever induce him to aid in or approve the general's election." 

C. S. Todd, Esq., of Shelby, Kentucky, in a note to Mr. Clay, of February 18, 
1828, speaking of a conversation held early in November, 1824, between Mr. 
Clay, himself, and his father, at Frankfort, says : " The whole conversation im- 
pressed on my mind the firm conviction, with which you seemed to be animated, 
that you could not, nor ought to, vote for General Jackson, under any circum- 
stances whatever." 



4r06 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

tion, and protracted sustentation, of this plot. That the accusing 
party, occupying such a high social standing, in a great community, 
professing to be governed by law and justice, should presume, 

D. Vertner, Esq., in a letter to the Hon. J. S. Johnston, dated Fort Gibson, 
January 10, 1828, says : "When on a visit to Kentucky, early in the month of 
August, 1824, I dined at a friend's house, in company with Mr. Clay and several 
other gentlemen. After dinner, the conversation turned on the then approaching 
presidential election, which elicited from Mr. Clay the following remarks, in sub- 
stance — that, if the house of representatives had to decide the election, there was 
very little doubt in his mind as to the result. He pronounced his objections to 
General Jackson with great decision and force. Had Mr. Clay afterward voted 
for General Jackson, I should have been compelled to assign him some motive 
other than the public good." 

A. W. WooLEY, Esq., aiso of Fort Gibson, in a letter to the Hon. J. S. Johns- 
ton, of January 9, 1828, says : "In the fall of the year 1824, sometime previous 
to the departure of Mr. Clay from Lexington, I had the pleasure to dine with Mr. 
Clay, at his own house, with a number of gentlemen. Various observations 
were made in opposition to the pretensions of General Jackson. Mr. Clay re- 
marked, that he felt no apprehension whatever from the election of General Jack- 
son, as, beyond a doubt, it would be decided by the house of representatives, he 
could not for a moment believe, they would elect the general in preference to Mr. 
Adams." 

B. S. Forrest, Esq., of Rockville, Maryland, in a letter from that place, No- 
vember 4, 1827, says : " Late in the autumn of 1824, I met with Colonel Benton, 
and General Beecher, members of Congress, at Dawson's tavern, in Rockville, on 
their way to Washington. Colonel Benton declared, it was impossible, that Mr. 
Clay should vote for General Jackson." 

"Washington City, December 7, 1827. 
" Sir : Your letter of the I9th ultimo, covering the Lexington Virginia Intelli- 
gencer of that date, has been duly received, and in answer to the inquiries you 
put to me, I have to state, that the article to which you invite my attention, is 
substantially, not verbally, correct, so far as it represents me as saying, that I was 
informed by Mr. Clay, in the fore part of December, 1824, that he intended to 
vote for Mr. Adams. ... I left Washington about the 15th of December, and 
had received the information from Mr. Clay before I set out. ... No one evei 
asked my leave to publish what I said. If any one had, the authors of the publi- 
cation in the Lexington paper, might have been spared an office, which must have 
been inexpressibly painful to their honorable feelings, as I should not have refused 
to the administration any testimony in my power to give, notwithstanding the 
character of the war which the great body of their forces are carrying on 
against me. 

"Thomas H. Benton." 

The Hon. William Pltjmek, of New Hampshire, afterward governor of th* 
state, in a document, dated Epping, N. H., March, 18, 1828, says : "At the time 
of the late presidential election, I had the honor of a seat in the house of repre- 
sentatives. With the friends of the several candidates, my intercourse was con- 
stant, intimate, and extensive. I can safely declare, that the results of all my 
inquiries, in respect to Mr. Clay, was a conviction, that in this difficult and deli- 
cate juncture, his conduct was distinguished by purity of motive, by a deep sense 
of public duty, and great prudence and discernment in the course proper to be 
pursue(J. In his high office as speaker of the house, he seemed anxious to pre- 
serve his usual impartiality between the conflicting parties. . . . With respect 
to his friends (by whom I mean the members of Congress from those states which 
had voted for him as president), it appeared to me, that, generally speaking, 
their attachment was not to Mr. Clay as an individual merely, but as a public 
man— as a statesman, whose general views of policy were in accordance with 
:beir own. ... I was told by one of the Ohio members [Mr. M'Arthur] , that 
tL«y [the Ohio delegation] had come to the determination to vote for Mr. Adams, 
before they had ascertained what would be Mr. Clay's course. ... It was my 
practice, while a member of Congress, to note down, at the close of each session, 
in a journal which I kept for that purpose, whatever occurred to me of an inter- 



THE WITNESSES. 407 

should dare, to bring such a charge, without a shadow of evidence, 
without any expectation of being able, without even a design, to 
support it — with a fixed plan to avoid supporting it — will be a sub- 

esting nature, during the session that had just closed. The following extract 
from this journal, is under date of June, 1824, and was written by me immedi- 
ately on my return from Washington : — 

" ' I spoke but twice this session to Mr. Clay, on this subject. The first was 
on the caucus, against which he declared himself; but proposed to be governed, 
in this whole matter, by his friends' advice. The other conversation related to 
General Jackson. It was soon after Pennsylvania declared for the general, and 
when he seemed, for the moment, to carry all before him. He spoke with equal 
truth and feeling on this subject. He said it was truly discouraging to see the 
people so intoxicated and deluded by a little military glory— that a man, totally un- 
known to the civil history of the country — who knew nothing of the constitution 
or laws of the land — and who, in short, had no other recommendation, than that 
which grew out of his fortunate campaign at New Orleans — should be thought 
of for president of the United States, and even preferred to all others ; at a time, 
too, when some of the ablest men the country had ever produced— he did not 
mean, he said, to include himself in the number — men, who had grown gray in the 
civil departments of the government. In Congress, in diplomatic missions, and 
in the cabinet — were before the public as candidates for that office — was, he 
said, such a symptom of the diseased state of public sentiment, as must be 
equally alarming and discouraging, whether viewed by those, who saw the highest 
objects of laudable ambition snatched from them by a military chief, or by those 
calm observers of passing events, who look with philosophical or prophetic eyes, 
on the causes of the permanence or decay of our free institutions.' 

" The above extract contains but an imperfect sketch of Mr. Clay's remarks to 
me at that time. He declared, with great energy, his opinion, that, whatever 
be General Jackson's other merits, he had no pretensions to the character of a 
statesman ; and he painted, in lively colors, the dangers, to which the country 
was exposed." 

Alexander Robertson, Esq., in a letter, dated, Union Township, Ross Co., 
January 12, 1828, and addressed to R. Kercheval, Esq., Chilicothe, says, he 
made a journey of six days in company with Mr. Clay and two other members of 
Congress from Kentucky, in November, 1824, on their way to Washington, and 
that, among other things, he heard Mr. Clay say : " There was little doubt, that 
the choice [for president] would be ultimately restricted to either Mr. Adams or 
General Jackson, in which event, he repeatedly stated, that it was his settled in- 
tention to vote for Mr. Adams." 

MR. CLAY TO JUDGE BROOKE. 

" Washington, 28th January, 1825. 
" My Dear Sir : My position, in regard to the presidential contest, is highly 
critical, and such as to leave me no path, on which I can move without concern. 
I have pursued, in resard to it, the rule which I always observe in regard to my 
public duty. I have interrogated my conscience, as to what I ought to do, and 
that faithful guide tells me, that I ought to vote for Mr. Adams. I shall fulfil its 
injunctions. Mr. Crawford's state of health, and the circumstances under which 
he presents himself to the house, appear to me to be conclusive against him. As 
a friend of liberty, and to the permanence of our institutions, I can not consent, 
in this early stage of their existence, by contributing to the election of a military 
chieftain, to give the strongest guaranty, that this republic will march in the 
fatal road, which has conducted every other republic to ruin. I owe to our 
friendship this frank expression of my intentions. I am, and shall continue to 
be, assailed, by all the abuse, which partisan zeal, malignity, and rivalry, can in- 
vent. I shall view, without emotion, these effusions of malice, and remain un- 
shaken in my purpose. What is a public man worth, if he will not expose him- 
self, on fit occasions, for the good of his country ? As to the result of the election, 
I can not speak with absolute certainty ; but there is every reason to believe, that 
we shall avoid the dangerous precedent, to which I allude. 

"H. Clat. 

•'Hon. F. Brooke." 

Vol. I.— 25 



408 



PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 



ject of increasing amazement, as the events recede in time, and 
public judgment becomes tempered with sobriety. That the ac- 
cused party, also occupying an equally elevated standing — not to 

" Washington, February 4, 1825. 

"My Dear Sir: I received your obliging letter of the 1st instant. Although 
my letter, to which it is an answer, was not intended for publication, I would 
rather that it should be published, and speak for itself, than its contents should 
appear through the medium of Mr. Ritchie's representations of them. With 
regard to its publication, you will be pleased to do as you may think proper. All 
that I feel anxious about, is, that the public should not receive an impression, that 
it was my intention that it should be published. My condition at this moment is 
most peculiar. The batteries of some of the friends of every man, who would 
now be president — or who, four or eight years hence, would be president — are 
directed against me, with only the exception of those of Mr. Adams. Some of 
the friends of General Jackson, Mr. Crawford, Mr. Calhoun, and Mr. Clinton, 
with very different ultimate ends, agree, for the present, to unite in assailing me. 
The object now is, on the part of Mr. Crawford and General Jackson, to drive 
me from the course, which my deliberate judgment points out ; and for the future, 
on the part of Mr. Clinton and Mr. Calhoun, to remove me, as an obstacle to 
their elevation. They all have yet to learn my character, if they suppose it pos- 
sible to make me swerve from my duty, by any species of intimidation, or denun- 
ciation. But I did not suppose, that my old friend Ritchie would join in the gen- 
eral cry. He ought to recollect, that he is struggling for a man, I for the country ; 
he, to elevate an unfortunate gentleman, worn down by disease [Mr. Crawford] ; 
I, to preserve our youthful institutions from the bane, which has destroyed all 
the republics of the old world. I might have expected from the patriotism of 
Thomas Ritchie, that he would have surrendered his personal predilections, and 
joined with me, in the effort to save us from a precedent fraught with the most 
pernicious consequences. I am so far disappointed. I say it with mortification 
and regret. But all attempts to make me unite with him — to induce me to give 
up the defence of our institutions, that we may elect a sick gentleman, who has 
also been rejected by the great body of the nation, are vain, and utterly fruitless. 
Mr. Ritchie ought to awake, should be himself again, and love Rome more than 
Caesar. 

"I observe %vhat you kindly tell me about the future cabinet. My dear sir, I 
want no office. Wben have I shown an avidity for office ? In rejecting the mis- 
sion to Russia, and the department of wai", under one administration ? In 
rejecting the same department, the mission to England, or any other foreign mis- 
sion, under the succeeding administration ? If Mr. Adams is elected, / kncnv not 
vho tvill be his cabinet. I know not whether I shall be offered a place in it, or not. 
If there should be any offer, I shall decide upon it, when it may be made, accord- 
ing to my sense of duty. But, do you not perceive, that this denunciation of me, 
by anticipation, is a part of the common system, between the discordant confed- 
erates, which I have above described ? Most certainly, if an office should be 
offered to me, under the new administration, and I should be induced to think, 
that I ought to accept it, I shall not be deterred from accepting it, either by the de- 
nunciation of open (yr secret enemies, or the hypocrisy of pretended friends. 
" With great respect, I am, faithfully, your friend, 

" H. Clay. 

" Judge Brooke." 

" Genito, .4pn7 11, 1828. 
" To the Editors of the Constitutional Whig : — 

" Gentlemen : The annexed is a copy of a letter written by Mr. Clay, to a 
member of the Virginia legislature, in answer to one written by that gentleman 
to Mr. Clay, at the particular solicitation of several members, who knew the 
friendship that existed between those two gentlemen. I have been endeavoring, 
for the last eighteen months, to get Mr. Clay's letter, but in consequence of its 
having been mislaid, I have been unable to do so until now. It goes — together 
with numerous other letters written by him pending the election — to show the 
high-minded and independent course adopted by him, throughout the contest. I 
nave the original now in mv possession : — 



THE WITNESSES. 409 

say more so — should be forced into such a position, and held 
there — a position, from which common law, and common justice, 
would instantly rescue the meanest citizen — will for ever be a sub- 

" Washington, February 4, 1825. 
"My Dear Sir: I have received, and read, with all the attention due to our 
ancient and unbroken friendship, your letter of the 2d instant. You state, that 
the conviction has been forced upon the Richmond public, by the papers which 
are daily received from this city, that / have gone over to the party of Mr. Jdams, 
with a view to constitute a part of hii cabinet. Do you believe it ? Then you 
ought not to respect me. Do you wish me to deny it ? Then you can not respect 
me. What do you desire ? That I should vote for Mr. Crawford ? I can not 
for General Jackson — I will not. I shall pursue the course, which my con- 
science dictates, regardless of all imputations, and all consequences. I love the 
state which gave me birth, more than she loves me. Personally, I would make 
any sacrifice to evince this attachment. But I have public duties to perform, 
which comprehend a consideration of her peculiar interest and wishes, and those 
of the rest of the confederacy. Those I shall perform. In doing so, I may in- 
cur, unfortunately, her displeasure. Be it so. I can not help it. The quiet 
of my conscience is of more importance to me, than the good opinion of even 
Virginia, highly as I do, and ever must, respect it. 

" Your faithful friend, 

" H. Clay." 

extract of a letter from JOSEPH KENT, GOVERNOR OF MARYLAND, TO A 
GENTLEMAN OF FRANKFORT, KENTUCKY. 

" RosEMONT, May 15, 1827. 
" I have seen so little of late, from your state, upon the subject of politics, that 
I do not know, whether the violence of the opposition to the present administra- 
tion, has extended itself among you, or not. Our friend, Mr. Clay, appears to 
be the chief object of persecution, with the opposition. They are, with great 
industry, conducting a systematical attack upon him, which commenced with the 
Kremer story, an entire fabrication. At the time the plot opened, I was a mem- 
ber of the house of representatives, and heard Kremer declare, he never in his life 
designed to charge Mr. Clay with anything dishonorable. The old man natu- 
rally honest, was imposed on at the time, by a powerful influence, and constrained 
to act his part in an affair, which, from beginning to end, was as much a fiction, 
as the ' Merry Wives of Windsor,' or the ' School for Scandal.' . . . Mr. Clay I 
have known intimately for sixteen years. His public career is completely identi- 
fied with every event of the country, from that period to the present time, whether 
in peace or war. During the late war, I have seen the house of representatives, 
after having gone out of committee of the whole, return to it again, for the sole 
purpose, of affording Mr. Clay (then speaker) an opportunity of putting down 
the desperate and infuriated advocates of British tyranny, insult, and injury. 
But his enemies say Mr. Adams bargained with him. This is assertion, without 
proof, and is destitute of truth, as it is of manly frankness. His superior quali- 
fications placed him in the department of state, and history furnishes no instance, 
when so superior a man had to bargain for a high station, for which his peculiar 
fitness was evident to every one." 

MR. CLAY TO GEORGE M'CLURE, ESQ. 

" I have no hesitation in saying, that I have long since decided in favor of Mr. 
Adams, in case the contest should be between him and General Jackson. What, 
I would ask, should be the distinguishing characteristic of an American statesman T 
Should it not be a devotion to civil liberty ? Is it then compatible with that prin- 
ciple, to elect a man, whose sole recommendation rests on military pretensions ? 
I, therefore, say to you unequivocally, that I can not, consistently with my own 
principles, support a military man." 

The above extract was sent by Mr. M'Clure, to the Hon. Robert S. Rose, at 
his request, with a letter, dated Bath (N. Y.), September 1, 1827, of which the 
following is a part : " After the electors of president and vice-president were cho- 
sen in 1824, it was ascertained, that the election would come before the house of 



410 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

ject of just and increasing amazement ! That this position of the 
parties, and siLch parties, should not only be tolerated for the in- 
stant, but permitted to remain for years, for an age, for ever, 

representatives, and that Mr. Clay would not be among the number returned. 
Not knowing his sentiments in relation to the candidates, I addressed a letter to 
him, stating, that in ail probability, the contest would be confined to Mr. Adams 
and General Jackson ; and in that case, wished to know which of them he would 
prefer ? Mr. Clay answered me promptly, by letter, bearing date December 28, 
1824, of which the following [above] is an extract." 

" Lexington (Ky.), March 21, 1825. 
" To the Editors of the National Intelligencer : — 

" Gentlemen : At different times before Mr. Clay left this place for Washing, 
ton, last fall, I had conversations with him on the subject of a choice of a presi- 
dent by the house of representatives. In all of them he expressed himself as 
having, long before, decided in favor of Mr. Adams, in case the contest should 
be between that gentleman and General Jackson. My last interview with him, 
was, I think, the very day before his departure, when he was still more explicit, 
as it was then certain, that the election would be transferred to that tribunal, and 
highly probable, that he would not be among the number returned. In the course 
of the conversation, I took occasion to express my sentiments, with respect to the 
delicate and difficult circumstances under which he would be placed ; on which 
he remarked, that I could not more fully apprehend them, than he did himself; 
but that nothing should deter him from the duty of giving his vote, and that no 
state of things could arise, that would justify him in preferring General Jackson 
to Mr. Adams, or induce him to support the former. So decisive, indeed, were his 
declarations on this subject, that, had he voted otherwise than he did, I should 
have been compelled to regard him, as deserving that species of censure, which 
has been cast upon him, for consistently adhering to an early and deliberate 
resolution. "Daniel Drake." 

The Hon. John McLean, (not Mr. Justice McLean, as represented in the first edi- 
tion), wrote a letter to the editor of the Illinois Gazette, from Washington, Feb. 
3, 1825 — he being at that time a senator of the United States, and a political 
friend of General Jackson — of which the following is an extract : " No doubt 
you have, with astonishment, seen the cards of Mr. Clay and Mr. Kremer, in 
the Intelligencer. ... No man, I think, believes, that there is the least foun- 
dation for the accusation against Mr. Clay, and no man affects to credit it, 
but Mr. Kremer. At any rate, I know of none who does." 

MR. WM. O. NILES TO MR. CLAY. EXTRACT. 

. . " A short time after the election [of Mr. Adams], my father was at Wash- 
ington, and attended the first levee, or party, given by the president elect (and I 
believe he held levees every fortnight while secretary of state) and there met 
General Jackson, who, after greeting him with much cordiality, took him by the 
arm, and, forcing his way through the crowd, led him to the passage, or hall, 
where he entered into a free discussion, of all the matters connected with the 
election, and again and again expressed himself satisfied with the result, saying, 
among other things, that ' he was not fit for the presidential chair — that he could 
not get on — that his proper place was at the head of an army,' &c. During that 
conversation, not one word escaped him, which betrayed the slightest suspicion, 
that he had been unfairly dealt with — or that any improper influences had been 
exerted in the election. About this interview I can not be mistaken, for I have 
heard my father frequently describe it." 

The father of the writer of the above letter, was Hezekiah Niles, Esq., editor 
and proprietor of the Weekly Register. 

LETTERS FROM CHIEF-JUSTICE MARSHALL TO MR. CLAY. 

" Richmond, jlpril 4, 1825. 
" Dear Sir : I have received your address to your former constituents ; and, 
«fl it was franked by you, I presume I am indebted to you for it. I have read it 
with great pleasure, as weU as attention, and am gratified at the full and com- 
plete view you have given of some matters, which the busy world has been 



THE WITNESSES. 411 

would in time be pronounced a fable, if history should neglect to 
register the facts ! 

What is that position ? One party, interested even to the high- 
employing itself upon. I required no evidence respecting the charge made by Mr. 
Kremer, not should I have required any, had I been unacquainted with you, or 
with the transaction — because I have long since ceased to credit charges destitute 
of proof. I consider them as mere aspersions. The minuteness of detail, how- 
ever, will enable your friends to encounter any insinuations on that subject, which 
may be thrown out in their hearing. More of this may be looked for, than any 
hostility to you would produce. There is unquestionably a party determined to 
oppose Mr. Adams at the next election, and this party will attack him through yon. 
It is an old, and has been a successful stratagem. No part of your letter was more 
necessary, than that which respects your former relations with that gentleman. 
" I am, dear sir, with respect and esteem, your obedient servant, 

" J. Marshall." 

" Richmond, January 5, 1828. 
" Dear Sir : I thank you for the copy of your address on the charges made 
against you respecting the election of president, which I have read with the more 
pleasure, because it combines a body of testimony much stronger than I had sup- 
posed possible, which must, I think, silence even those who wish the charges to 
be believed. 

" With sincere wishes for the improvement of your health, and with real 
esteem, 

" I am, dear sir, your obedient servant, 

" J. Marshall. 
" Hon. H. Clay." 

"Richmond, May 1, 1828. 

" Dear Sir : A visit to my friends in the upper country, from which I returned 
yesterday, prevented my receiving your letter of the 8th of April, at an earlier 
day. The note you mention, was drawn from me very unwillingly, and the opinion 
it expressed, was the necessary result of evidence on a mind not predisposed to 
condemn. If it draws upon me a portion of that scurrility, which has been lav- 
ished on others, I must console myself with the reflection, that I have not volun- 
tarily intruded myself upon a controversy, which has been carried on with such 
unexampled virulence. 

" Mr. Call looked in upon me yesterday afternoon, and showed me your two 
letters to Mr. Blair. We have indeed ' fallen upon evil times,' if the seal of con- 
fidence is to be broken, and such letters to be shown, for the purpose of injuring 
the writer. No fair mind can misunderstand them, or pervert their light and 
sportive language into a confession of dishonorable views. I know not how Mr. 
Blair can abstain from a public vindication of your conduct, so far as it is devel- 
oped in those letters. 

" With great and respectful esteem, I am, dear sir, your obedient servant, 

" J. Marshaix. 

"Hon. H. Clay." 

CHIEF-JUSTICE MARSHALL TO THE EDITOR OF THE RICHMOND WHIG PUBLISHED 

APRIL 2, 1828. 

" March 29, 1828. 

" Sir : I perceive in your paper of to-day, a quotation from the Marylander, 
of certain expressions ascribed to me, respecting the pending election for the 
presidency of the United States, which I think it my duty to disavow. Holding 
the situation I do under the government of the United States, I have thought it 
right to abstain from any public declarations on the election ; and were it other- 
wise, I should abstain, from the conviction, that my opinions would have no 
weight. 

" I admit having said in private, that, though I had not voted since the estab 
lishment of the general ticket system, and had believed that I never would vote du 
ring its continuance, I might probably depart from my resolution in this instance, 
from the strong sense I felt of the injustice of the charge of corruption agairist thi 
president and secretary of state. 



412 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

est object of human ambition, is permitted, with impunity, 
and without the responsibihty of proof, to bring the gravest charges 
— charges amounting to crime of the foulest and most atrocious 

" I never did use the other expression ascribed to me. I request you to say, 
that you are authorized to declare, that the Marylander has been misinformed. 
" Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

" J. Marshall. 
" John H. Pleasants, Esq." 

MK. MADISON TO MR. CLAY. 

" MoNTPELiER, January 6, 1828. 
" Dear Sir : I have duly received the copy of your address, politely forwarded 
to me. Although I have taken no part in the depending contest, and have not 
been led to place myself publicly on that ground, I could not peruse the appeal 
you have made, without being sensible of the weight of testimony it exhibits, and 
of the eloquence by which it is distinguished. 

" With great esteem and friendly regards, 

"James Madison. 

« Hon. H. Clay." 

" Boston, July 24, 1827. 

" My Hear Sir : Your reply to General Jackson's letter is admirable, and has 
been most favorably received everyv^here, at least on this side of the Alleganies. 
It places the general in a position where he can not remain. He must move in 
wme direction ; and whatever movement he makes, will either embarrass his 
friends, or still more embarrass himself. I have a suspicion, that the ' respectable 
member of Cmgress' is Mr. Buchanan. If this should turn out so, it will place 
him in an awkward situation, since, it seems, he did recommend a bargain with 
your friends, on the suspicion, that such a bargain had been proposed to them, on 
the part of friends of Mr. Adams. I am curious to see how this matter will de- 
velop itself. 

" Yours always truly, " Daniel Webster. 

« Hon. H. Clay." 

" Boston, August 22, 1827. 

" My Dear Sir : You speak very modestly of recent events, in which you 
have borne so distinguished and so successful a part. I can not think that General 
Jackson will ever recover from the blow which he has received. Your speech at 
Lexington, in point of merit, as a clear and well-stated argument, is entirely at 
the head of all your eflbrts ; and its effects on public opinion have not been ex- 
ceeded by those of any political paper — I may almost say, within my recollection. 
Buchanan is treated too gently. Many persons think his letter candid. I deem 
it otherwise. It seems to me to be labored very hard to protect the general, as 
far as he could, without injury to himself. Although the general's friends, this 
way, however, affect to consider Buchanan's letter as supporting the charge, it is 
possible the general himself, and the Nashville Commentator, may think other- 
wise, and complain of Buchanan. I should expect this with some confidence, if 
they received the letter a little earlier than they may have seen the turn which 
the Atlantic editors have attempted to give it. As these last have pretty gener- 
ally agreed to say, that the letter does support the general, the Nashville Com- 
mentator, if they see the example in season, may be disposed to follow it. I do 
not yet learn what answer comes from that quarter to your speech, &c. 

" Ever truly yours, " Daniel Webster. 

" Hon. Mr. Clay." 

"January 1, 1828. 

" My Dear Sir : After company went out last night, and I had packed up my 
trunk, I sat down, and read your letter through. Probably, I should have voted 
against any further publication ; but I am now fully satisfied this will do good. 
The statement is clear, and the evidence irresistible. I am satisfied, upon my 
conscience, that the whole business originated with General Jackson himself? 
whether through mistake, or from intention, 1 do not say. Adieu. 

" Yours always truly, " Daniel Webster. 

" Mr. Clay." 

Thifl letter alludes to Mr. Clay's address to the public, of December, 1827. 



THE WITNESSES. 4:13 

character — against a supposed rival, to keep his rival back, and put 
himself forward ! The other party — whose fair fame, hardly earned 
in a long career of untarnished private honor, and of most scrupu- 

In 1829, after Mr. Adams had retired from the presidential chair, in reply to a 
letter from a committee of gentlemen in New Jersey, who had addressed him, he 
spoke of Mr. Clay as follows : " Upon him the foulest slanders have been showered. 
Long known and appreciated, as successively a member of both houses of your 
national legislature, as the unrivalled speaker, and at the same time most efficient 
leader of debates in one of them ; as an able and successful negotiator of your 
interests, in war and peace, with foreign powers, and as a powerful candidate for 
the highest of your trusts, the department of state itself was a station, which, by 
its bestowal, could confer neither profit, nor honor, upon him, but upon which he 
has shed unfading honor, by the manner in which he has discharged its duties. 
Prejudice and passion have charged him with obtaining that office by bargain and 
corruption. Before you, my fellow-citizens, in the presence of our country and 
Heaven, I pronounce that charge totally unfounded. This tribute of justice is 
due from me to him, and I seize, with pleasure, the opportunity afibrdcd me by 
your letter, of discharging the obligation. As to my motives for tendering to him 
the department of state when I did, let that man who questions them, come for- 
ward ; let him look around among statesmen and legislators of this nation, and of 
that day ; let him then select and name the man, whom, by his pre-eminent tal- 
ents, by his splendid services, by his ardent patriotism, by his all-embracing pub- 
lic spirit, by his fervid eloquence in behalf of the rights and liberties of mankind, 
and by his long experience in the affairs of the Union, foreign and domestic, a 
president of the United States, intent only upon the honor and welfare of his 
country, ought to have preferred to Henry Clay. Let him name the man, and 
then judge you, my fellow-citizens, of my motives." 

When Mr. Adams was on a tour in the western states, in the fall of 1843, in 
addressing the chairman of the committee of his reception, at Maysville, Ken- 
tucky, he said: "I thank you, sir, for the opportunity you have given me of 
speaking of the great statesman, who was associated with me in the administra- 
tion of the general government, at my earnest solicitation ; who belongs not to 
Kentucky alone, but to the whole Union ; and who is not only an honor to this 
state, and this nation, but to mankind. The charges to which you refer, after 
my term of service had expired, and it was proper for me to speak, I denied be- 
fore the whole country, and I here reiterate and reaffirm that denial ; and as I 
expect shortly to appear before my God, to answer for the conduct of my whole 
life, should those charges have found their way to the throne of eternal justice, I 
WILL, in the presence of Omnipotence, pronounce them false." 

In a public speech at Covington, Kentucky, during the same tour, as above, 
Mr. Adams said : " Not only have I received invitations from public bodies and 
cities, but also from individuals, among the first of whom was that great man, 
your own citizen, who, during a very large portion of my public life, and in va- 
rious public capacities, in several instances on matters relating to your interests, 
has been my associate and friend, and the recollection of whom brings me to the 
acknowledgment, before this whole assembly, that in all the various capacities in 
which I have known him to act, whether as associate, as assistant, or acting in- 
dependently of me, in his own individual character and capacity, I have ever 
found him not only one of the ablest men with whom I have ever co-operated, 
but also one of the most amiable and worthy." 

a resolution of the general assembly of the state of TENNESSEE. 

" Resolved, by the general assembly of the state of Tennessee, That, so much of 
the proceedings adopted by the legislature of Tennessee in 1827, as sustam the 
allegation, either expressed or implied, of an improper and corrupt combination, 
or, as it has been more generally denominated, ' corruption, bargain, and intrigue,' 
between John Q. Adams and Henry Clay, is, in the opinion of this general as- 
sembly, unsupported by proof, and not believed. 
« Adopted January 27, 1844. " D. L. Barringfji, 

" Speaker of the House of Represent ittves. 
" J. M. Anderson, 

" Speaker of the Senate. 
" A true copy : Jvo. S. Young, Secretary of State." 



414 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

lous fidelity to the public, precious to himself, and momentously 
important to the community — invokes proof, demands justice, and 
is denied both ! While the accuser, thus interested, and thus 

The following record is from the journal of the senate of Kentucky, January 
25, 1828 : " The legislature view with deep concern, and feelings of just indigna- 
tion, the efforts that are now making throughout the United States, to blast the 
reputation of the distinguished members of Congress from this state, who voted for 
John Quincy Adams to be president of the United States. They have no hesita- 
tion in saying, that it is their confirmed opinion, from great deliberation and a full 
examination of all the facts and evidence adduced, that the charges of bargain, 
sale, and corruption, in the election of John Q. Adams, are utterly false and mali- 
cious ; that they are brought forward, and endeavored to be sustained, for party 
purposes, and to elevate General Jackson to the office of president of the United 
States." 

"OsuiscHU Bend, Russel County (Ala.), May 26, 1844. 

"Dear Sir: I have had the honor to receive your favor of the ITth instant. 
There is nothing in the nature of your communication, which requires an apology 
for your addressing me. 

" If I had in my possession such a letter from General Jackson, as has been 
most erroneously supposed, I should, under his very emphatic card of the 3d in- 
stant, in the Nashville Union, have felt myself released from all reserve, as to its 
publication. You will have perceived, ere this reaches you, from my reply to that 
gentleman, that he never, in the confidence which once subsisted between us, 
transmitted to me such a paper. 

" Indeed, I have frequently heard him express opinions altogether at variance 
with the alleged retraction. His belief, and that generally of the party to which 
I was then attached, / did not share, in reference to the charge of bargain and 
corruption, which, in 1825, was so freely preferred against Mr. Clay and Mr. Ad- 
ams, and which constituted the electioneering staple of our party, during the 
four years' war, which ended in our triumph in 1829. 

*' It would, in my humble opinion, have been an act of supererogation on the 
part of Mr. Clay, to have made a bargain for what, by the force and gravity of 
political causes and geographical considerations, was inevitable, without either his 
crime cyr his participation — an offer of a seat in Mr. Adams's cabinet. In ac- 
cepting it, / have always understood, he acted in conformity with the advice of 
some of the most influential supporters of Mr. Crawford, whose friends then oc- 
cupied a position of neutrality between the two great parties of General Jackson 
and Mr. Adams, although they soon after, it is true, became belligerents on our 
side. / sincerely believe, that Mr. Clay's acceptance of the office, that subjected 
him to such obloquy, was the result of a sense of duty which he owed to the coun- 
try, to aid by his counsels him whom he had assisted to place in power. He cer- 
tainly relinquished, for the department of state, a position in the house of represen- 
tatives, far more desirable, and of more influence and authority, which was much 
better adapted to the peculiar and transcendent vein of his signal ability for dis- 
tinction in a popular assembly. 

" I know that this view of the case runs counter to the opinions of my old 
chief [General Jackson]— who, if he puts himself at the head of the annexation 
movement, will be my chief again — and to those of many esteemed friends, with 
whom I was proudly and victoriously associated in the struggle of 1828 and '29. 
But they must pardon me for adhering to opinions — however valueless— /ong since 
entertained and frequently expressed. And now, when I have no sort of connex- 
ion with any party in the country — except on one isolated question, associated, as 
I believe, with the best interests of the whole Union, and the vital security of the 
south— I hope I may be allowed, without any impeachment of my own motives— 
and certainlv with no adhesion, either expressed or implied, to the politics of Mr. 
Clay — to do' justice, as far as my humble opinions can afford it, to his public repu- 
tation, and to his unsullied personal honor. 

" I remain, dear sir, with esteem, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

" J. Hamilton. 
"Hon. John White, House of Representatives." 

The above letter, it will be observed, was called for, on account of General 
Jackson's card, of May 3. 1844, published in the Nashville Union, and copied at 
the beginning of chapter xiv. of this volume. 



THE WITNESSES. 415 

shielded, marches on, unobstructed and triumphant, to his goal, in 
contempt of all established principles of law and equity, the ac- 
cused, driven from the only tribunal where justice could possibly 

" New York, Septetnber 1, 1845. 

" Dear Sir : In compliance with your request, I submit in writing the follow- 
ing statement, which I made verbally to you a few days ago. You are at liberty 
to make such use of it as may seem proper to you. 

" In April, 1827, a gentleman of Virginia, then residing in Fayetteville, N. C, 
received the celebrated letter from his friend Carter Beverley. Struck with the 
strong language employed by General Jackson, in the conversation with Mr. Bev- 
erley and others, the recipient of the letter communicated it for publication in my 
paper, the Fayetteville Observer, in which it appeared on the 5th of April, 1827. 

" The statements and proofs which this publication called forth, will no doubt 
be fully and fairly detailed in your forthcoming work. It is not my purpose here 
to speak of them ; but merely, at y»ur request, to state the fact, that though I 
was then, in common with almost all southern men, opposed to Messrs. Adams 
and Clay, and earnestly employed in advocating the election of General Jackson 
(with a view more to their defeat than to his elevation), I could not, with all my 
then existing prejudices against Mr. Clay, shut my eyes to a complete refutation 
of General Jackson's charge of 'bargain and corruption,' which Mr. Clay was 
enabled to present, even from General Jackson's own witnesses. After the evi- 
dence on both sides had been fully produced, I expressed my opinion of the whole 
case, in the ' Observer' of December 20, 1827, as follows : — 

•' ' There is no duty more binding on an honorable man than the frank and prompt 
acknowledgment of and atonement for error, especially when an injury to another 
has been the result of that error. It is in discharge of this duty that we feel 
called upon to copy the two following articles, on a subject with which all our 
readers are familiar, viz. : the alleged bargain between Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay.' 

"[After giving those articles, the 'Observer' continued]: — 

" ' It will be recollected that the first appearance of these charges in anything 
like a tangible shape, and backed by a " responsible accuser," was caused by the 
appearance in this paper of a letter giving the substance of words spoken by Gen- 
eral Jackson ; which letter was soon after avowed by the author, and the language 
attributed to General Jackson Tnore than assumed by him. For the publication 
of that letter we take no blame to ourselves ; because it was done in discharge 
of a paramount obligation of public journalists to expose, on proper evidence, 
the corruption of the public servants. We believed that we had such evidence. 

" ' That we had not, and that the charges could not be sustained, after having 
been made, is the fault of others. We feel bound to say, that in our opinion the 
charge of bargain has not been sustained by proof. 

" ' We can not for a moment suppose, however, that General Jackson has at- 
tempted to fix what he believes to be a false charge upon Mr. Clay. If we 
thought so, he would be the last man who should receive any support of ours.' 

"I need scarcely add, that time, which so essentially changed my opinion in 
regard to General Jackson, has but served to strengthen and confirm my confi- 
dence in the disinterestedneis, the patriotism, and the purity, of the long public 
life of Henry Clay. 
" Very respectfully and truly, your obedient servant, 

« E. J. Hale, 
"Editor of the Fayetteville (N. C.) Observer. 
" Calvi j Coltok, Esq." 

[CONFIDIRTIAL.] 

"House of Representatives, Jetruary 14, I82i>. 
"Mt Dear Sir: Southard r-emains in the navy department. I am oflfered that 
of the state, but have not yet decided. The others not yet determined on. Craw- 
ford retires. What shall I do ? 

"In haste, your friend, 

" H. Clay. 
" The Hon. F. Brooke." 



416 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

be done, is compelled to go in search of evidence for the proof of a 
NEGATIVE, and use it, as best he can, without the sanction, with- 
out the solemnity of public justice ! The interested fiat of the 

[CONFIDENTIAL.] 

" Washington, February 18, 1825. 

" My Dear Sir : When the subject of the office of the department of state to 
me was first opened to my congressional friends, there existed among them some 
diversity of opinion, as to the propriety of my accepting it. On the one hand, it 
was said that, if I took it, that fact would be treated as conclusive evidence of 
the justice of the imputations which have been made against me ; that the house 
of representatives was my theatre ; that the administration would want me there, 
if it should prove itself worthy of support, more than in the cabinet; and that my 
own section [of the country] would not like to see me translated from the legisla- 
tive hall to an executive department. 

" On the other hand, it was urged that, whether I accepted or declined the of- 
fice, I should not escape severe animadversion ; that, in the latter contingency, it 
would be said, that the patriotic Mr. Kremer, by an exposure of the corrupt ar- 
rangement, had prevented its consummation ; that the very object of propaga- 
ting the calumny would be accomplished ; that, conscious of my own purity of 
intention, I ought not to give the weight of a feather to the Kremer aflfair; that 
there would be much difficulty in filling the administration without me ; that ei- 
ther of the other candidates [for the presidency in 1824], if he had been elected, 
would have made me the same offer; that it would be said of me, that, after hav- 
ing contributed to the election of a president, I thought so ill of him, that I would 
not take the first place under him ; that he was now the constitutional head of 
the government, and as such I ought to regard him, dismissing any personal ob- 
jections which I might have heretofore had to him ; that I had perhaps remained 
long enough in the house of representatives ; and that my own section [of the 
country] could not be dissatisfied with seeing me placed where, if I should prove 
myself possessed of the requisite attainments, my services might have a more ex- 
tended usefulness. 

" On mature consideration, those of my friends, who were originally averse 
from my entering the office, changed their opinion, and I believe they were finally 
unanimous in thinking, that I ought not to hesitate in taking upon myself its du- 
ties. Those of Mr. Adams, especially in New England, were alike unanimous, 
and indeed, extremely urgent in their solicitations. Several of Mr. Crawford's 
friends (Mr. McLane, of Delaware, Mr. Forsyth, Mr. Mai>gum, &c.. &c.), and 
also some of those of General Jackson in Pennsylvania, expressed to me their 
strong convictions, that I ought to accept. The opposition to my acceptance is 
limited chiefly to the violent of Mr. Calhoun's friends, and to some of those of 
Mr. Crawford and General Jackson. 

" From the first, I determined to throw myself into the hands of my friends, 
and if they advised me to decline the office, not to accept it; but, if they thought 
it was my duty, and for the public interest, to go into it, to do so. I have an un- 
affected repugnance to any executive employment, and my rejection of the offer, 
if it were in conformity with their deliberate judgment, would have been more 

compatible with my feelings, than its acceptance. 

• ••••••• 

" This is not written for publication, in whole or in part. • • • 

" I am, my dear sir, your affectionate friend, 
«* The Hon. F. Brooke." " H. Clay. 

MR. CRAWFORD TO MR. CLAY — EXTRACT. 

« WooDLAWN, February 4, 1828. 

** Mt Dear Sir : 

« « • • • • • • 

" I hope you know me too well, to suppose, that I have countenanced the; 
charge of corruption, which has been reiterated against you. The truth is, I ap-| 
proved of your vote when it was given, and should have voted as you did between' 
Jackson and Mams. But candor compels me to say, that I disapproved of your 

accepting an office under him. 

• •••*• •♦ 

" Wm. H. Crawford ' 



THE WITNESSES. 417 

accuser, is permitted to pass for the full value and effect of proof, 
conviction, sentence, execution ! Dodging responsibility when 
confronted by it, flying from court when justice calls him to her 

EXTRACT FROM MR. CLAY's REPLY. 

" Washington, February 10, 1828. 
« Mr Dear Sir : 
• ••••••• 

"I do, my dear sir, know you too well to suppose, that you ever countenanced 
the charge of corruption against me. No man of sense and candor — at least none 
that know me — ever could or did countenance it. Your frank admission, that you 
would have voted as I did, between Mr. Adams and General Jackson, accords 
with the estimate I have ever made of your intelligence, your independence, and 
your patriotism. Nor am I at all surprised, or dissatisfied, with the expression of 
your opinion, that I erred in accepting the place which I now hold. When two 
courses present themselves in human affairs, and one only is pursued, experience 
develops the errors of the selection which has been made. Those which would 
have attended the opposite course, can only be matter of speculation. Thus it is 
in the case referred to. We see, or think we see, distinctly, the errors of the 
alternative which I embraced. But, are we sure, that, if I had chosen the other, 
I should not have been liable to greater hazard, or more animadversion ? The 
truth is, as I have often said, my condition was one full of embarrassments, what- 
ever way I might act. My own judgment was rather opposed to my acceptance 
of the department of state ; but my friends — and let me add, two of your besL 
friends, Mr. McLane, of Delaware, and Mr. Forsyth, urged me strongly not to 
decline it. It was represented by my friends, that I should get no credit for the 
forbearance, but that, on the contrary, it would be said, that my forbearance was 

evidence of my having made a bargain, though unwilling to execute it 

* Your enemies have sought, by previous denunciation, to frighten you. They do 
not believe that you have acted otherwise than from motives of the purest patriot- 
ism ; but they wish to alarm you, and prevent you from entering the department 
of state.' These, and other similar arguments were pressed on me, and after a 
week's deliberation, I yielded to their force. It is quite possible, that 1 may 
have erred. ... I shall at least have no cause of self-reproach. 

*♦***«• 

" Your faithful friend and obedient servant, 

"H. Clay. 
"Hon. Wm. H. Crawford." 

MR. CLAY TO JUDGE BROOKE — EXTRACT. 

" Washington, .>fwgMs< 14, 1827. 
• • * " Instead of any intrigues on my part and that of my friends, they 
were altogether on the side of General Jackson and his friends. • • • 

« H. Clay." 

N. B. It is proper to observe, that all Mr. Clay's private letters found in this 
work, are obtained independently of him, and used without consulting him. 

CARTER Beverley's recantation. 

" Virginia, Middlesex County, Urbana, February 8, 1842. 
" Dear Sir : It will be no doubt a matter of some astonishment to you, in re- 
ceiving from me the present address. I will not preface it with any kind of 
apology, because, in doing it, I justify my mind, in the discharge of an act of con- 
science, and a duty, that I feel the utmost pleasure in performing. Although the 
time is quite far gone, since I became very innocently instrumental in circulating 
throughout the country, a veiy great attack upon your character and virtue as a 
gentleman, and certainly a very heavy one, as a public man, I feel exceedingly 
desirous to relieve you, as far as I can, from the slander, and my own feelings 
from the severe compunction that is within me, of having been, though neither 
directly nor indirectly, your personal accuser ; yet, that I was drawn indiscreetly 
into the representation of an attack upon you. 



4:1'8 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

tribunal, the accuser is no sooner driven from one position, than 
he takes up another, from which to iterate his charges ! 

All the world knew, that the witnesses were on the spot, whence 

" It is altogether unnecessary to enter into the minute circumstances, at so dis- 
tant a period, of how it happened, and the particulars of it all. The public were, 
at the time, sufficiently informed, why and wherefore, I became the relater of the 
assault, to which I especially allude. I did not solicit the account, that gave the 
gross, abominable scandal of you ; but merely asked, if it was, or could possibly 
be, true ? I had long before heard of it, and was at the seat of government when 
it was represented to have occurred. The reason of my having mentioned it, 
upon which the answer was given to me, was, that I thought it an infinite scan- 
dal upon the country, if true ; and if not true, it would give you a fair opportu- 
nity of exculpating yourself. I had, therefore, two objects in view, which are 
easily seen ; and from either, or both, I conceive that I ought to be exonerated, at 
least from any design to do you injustice. Imagine yourself, what motive I could 
possibly have had to injure you — a gentleman with whom I had no difference, 
with whom I had been variously acquainted, and though never intimately so, yet 
there was always an urbanity and an interchange of civilities between us, that 
never failed to make quite a favorable impression upon me, and if it was not re- 
ciprocal, it was my misfortune. To strew difficulty in your way with design, was 
utterly improbable at least. You, a distinguished man in the eyes of the nation, 
what advantage could I have expected from a derision of you ? Surely, it was 
very improbable. I most assuredly and most certainly never entertained the 
smallest prejudice or unfavorable idea of you, until the affair of the Fayetteville 
letter, that appeared under my signature, upon which was founded, I am quite 
sorry to say, the charge which galloped through the Union against you. 

" Your memorable pamphlet, and some letters, that came out in your defence, 
were entirely expressive of the whole transaction ; and although I thought at the 
time, that you had not properly conceived me, I studiously forbore to say more 
than had been expressed in my correspondence at Wheeling, with Mr. Noah Zane. 
My entire object now is, a desire I have to be exonerated from the belief of any 
special design to injure you. For, I again declare, that I never felt the smallest 
degree of unkindness toward you, other than what was at the time impressed upon 
me, by what had been communicated. I have never since the affair, fallen in 
company with you but once, and that was for a moment only, and it took place in 
the hall of the house of representatives, when a ballot was going on for a public 
printer. I was standing alongside of Gov. Branch, then a senator of the United 
States, when you passed on at my back, and without perceiving who I was, before 
you got up to us, you asked how the ballot had gone ? Mr. Branch had not at 
tended to it, and I had just taken it down with a pencil. I handed to you the 
paper, and after looking at it, you returned it, bowed, and passed on. Mr. Branch 
then asked me, if that was the first time you and I had met, since the affair of the 
Fayetteville letter. I said, ' Yes.' The matter then vanished, and I have nevei 
met with you since. 

" This letter is intended to show you, that the long lapse of time, and tht 
many growing circumstances of the country and the government, have long aso 
convinced me, that the very greatest injustice was done you in the charge made. 
I had, too, an opportunity lately of reading over very calmly and dispassionately 
a file of newspapers, containing the whole affair, and carefully dilated upon it. 
Mr. Buchanan, who was represented to be your accuser, exhibited no proof what- 
ever against you ; and he even denied having ever made the charge upon you. 
I have discharged my mind in addressing myself so fully to you, and can only add, 
that if a publication of this letter can render you any essential service (though I 
do not deserve it), you have full liberty from me, to let the public see it. One 
circumstance I beg to assure you of, that, whatever my verbal and written expres- 
sions of you were (and I suppose I must have given much scope to both, though 
I recollect now nothing of what I did say), I again say, that I am most thoroughly 
convinced, that you were most untruthfully, and therefore unjustly treated ; for I 
have never seen any evidence to substantiate at all the charge. 

" Before I take final leave of you — as it may be, and very likely will be, the 
last intercourse between us — I must be allowed to make a few more observations 
though I am quite sensible, that my letter has already exceeded the proper limit 



THE WITNESSES. 419 

the specifications of charge first emanated. They were polled in 
the charge itself: " the friends of Mr. Clay," "the friends of Mr. 
Adams," and " the friends of General Jackson ;" and so polled, 
that it was impossible to mistake them. Their names were on the 
journals of the house, as members. But the moment they were 
being invoked, to appear in the capacity of witnesses, the accuser, 
from behind the curtain, issues his mandate to his agents, to re- 
treat, under a plea of jurisdiction ! The thing, which he was 
interested to prove, and could prove, if true — which he was chal- 
lenged to prove, and bound, in honor and justice, to prove — he 
abandons instantly, as the chance of proof presents itself! It was 
not for him to enter a plea of jurisdiction, to avoid investigation, 
but for the other party, if either. For either to do it, was a con- 
fession of weakness, of wrong — of all the turpitude and crime in- 
volved in the case. 

It happens, however, in the process of time, that the negative 
of these specifications of charge, is completely, triumphantly estab- 
lished — not, indeed, with the forms of public justice, nor with its 
sanctions, nor with its solemnity, as should have been done, for 
the proper effect of the verdict. But the accused was denied this 
justice. The first twenty witnesses, who give their evidence in 

Yet I hazard, with a gentleman of liberality, nothing, I am sure, in asking a little 
further indulgence. From the temper of the nation, and the peculiar state of 
things, it is presumable, that you are to be the whig candidate for the next elec- 
tion of president of the United States. You have, I am sure, too high respect for 
public opinion, as you have too much veneration for the high dignity of that sit- 
uation, to be negligent of it. The greatest objection that has been yet started 
against you for that high post, I am concerned to say, hinges upon the old aflair, 
which has been the subject of this letter; and I am sure, as far as I have any in- 
fluence, the representation I made against you, I sincerely hope, will be per- 
fectly removed by what I have already expressed to you. I know a great many 
most respectable, independent, high-minded politicians of the country, now ex- 
tending to a great distance of the Union, that would have supported you through 
the thickest vapor that has hitherto cast a blind upon the nation, but for the cir- 
cumstances referred to. It can surely now no longer be matter of doubt upon 
their minds ; for he who was generally believed to be the circulator of the egre- 
gious slander against you, hereby revokes his belief of it, and unequivocally de- 
clares, that it is unproved, and stands utterly unsupported to this time — a period 
of fifteen or sixteen years. But, like all spirited malevolence, it will be still said 
by some, that, even in this explanation I have given you of the part I bore in it, 
there is an understanding between us, and that it is all designed for political ef- 
fect. You and I can most readily meet the charge, 1 am sure. I have had no 
intercourse, or interview — as is expressed in my letter — with you, for at least ten 
or eleven years — and there has been no sort of interchange between us. But 
you and I have become old enough to expect all such matters to arrive, and are 
therefore prepared, I dare say, for the coming of them. Then, let it be so. I 
am sure we shall neither of us regard it. I sincerely wish you health and hap- 
piness, and remain, dear sir, most respectfully, 

" Your obedient servant, 

''CaBTEB BETEEI.XT. 

" To the Hon. Henrt Clay " 



420 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

the lower margin of this chapter, were members of the house of 
representatives at the time, and are the very persons, who, more 
than all others, must necessarily know — it was physically and 
morally impossible they should be ignorant — if there was any truth 
in these charges, or the least foundation for them whatever ; and 
to suppose, that their evidence is not conclusive, is to allege, that 
twenty such men, never impeached before or since, men of high 
and pure character through life, in all its relations, have, indepen- 
dently of each other, without opportunity of concert, and without 
any conceivable adequate motive, unanimously falsified themselves, 
each for each, standing alone in his crime ! And what is remark- 
able, one of them, the Hon. David White, of Kentucky, was 
actually in the field, when he gave his evidence — as may be seen 
in his own words — fighting against Mr. Adams, for General Jack- 
son ! The effect of this united, harmonious evidence, from the 
very persons, who knew all about it, so far as there was anything 
in it — more especially when viewed in connexion with the absence 
of all conflicting evidence from the other side, not a particle of 
which has ever been adduced or found — is to leave the accuser, 
standing, like the baseless fabric of a vision, on nothing ! 

The evidence of these members of the house of representatives, 
goes to the points of fact, as charged, and annihilates them, in the 
absence of all positive proof. But there is another class of wit- 
nesses, brought forward in this chapter, still more numerous, and 
not less respectable, nor less worthy of credit, who certify to facts, 
vhich establish the moral impossibility of the truth of the charges 
alleged against Mr. Clay. Here, too, are political opponents of 
Mr. Clay, Gen. Call and Col. Benton, giving evidence of great 
force — especially Col. Benton. His is conclusive. And Gen. 
Call's is tantamount to evidence from General Jackson himself. 
He and General Jackson were then fellow-travellers, and he un- 
doubtedly spoke the general's sentiments, viz., that Mr. Clay could 
not support Gen. Jackson, without being guilty of duplicity. Mr. 
Clay's conscientious support, in 1819, in the house of representa- 
tives, of a resolution of censure on General Jackson, for his con- 
duct in the Seminole war, as everybody knew, had alienated the 
general from him; and Mr. Clay's opinion of General Jackson 
was not less notorious. Most of the witnesses here adduced, 
prove, that, during the year, fall, and December of 1824, at sun- 
dry times, and to a host of individuals, Mr. Clay had expressed 
himself freely, emphatically, decidedly, that he never could, and 



THE WITNESSES 421 

never would, support General Jackson for the presidency, in any 
event whatever — so decidedly, and so often, that he would have 
lost all character and standing, if he had done so, or been known 
even to have entertained the purpose. It was morally impossible^ 
that such a purpose should be entertained by him for a moment. 
Such is the testimony of a host of witnesses, led off by such names, 
as General Lafayette ; Governor Kent, of Maryland ; James Bar- 
bour, secretary of war ; the honorable senators, Johnston and 
Bouligny, of Louisiana ; the Hon. J. J. Crittenden, and Chief- 
Justice Robertson, of Kentucky — all of unimpeachable character ; 
Mr. Clay's political opponents, Gen. Call and Mr. Benton ; and 
so on. 

Governor Kent's letter is an impressive proof of the absurd, the 
morally impossible, and the false. Who will not feel the force of 
the following remark : " History furnishes no instance, where so 
superior a man had to bargain for a high station, for which his 
peculiar fitness was evident to every one." 

The extract from Mr. Niles's letter is one of great force, and 
irresistibly instructive, as it exhibits, either a palpable absurdity, 
or the most startling hypocrisy, on the supposition of the truth of 
the charges against Messrs. Adams and Clay. The letters from 
Chief- Justice Marshall will be read with profound interest, 
not less on account of the source, from which they come, than the 
eloquent opinion which they deliver, in the case. " I have long 
since ceased to credit charges destitute of proof. I consider them 
as MERE aspersions." He speaks of Mr. Clay's address of 
December, 1827, with its accompanying documents — extracts from 
many of which are found in this chapter — as " combining a body 
of evidence much stronger than he had supposed possible, which, 
he thinks, must silence even those, who wish the charges to be 
believed." In his letter of May 1, 1828, he says, that " the 
opinion expressed," in his note of March 29, to the editor of the 
Richmond Whig, " was the necessary result of evidence on a mind 
not predisposed to condemn." He did then go so far as to 
"condemn" General Jackson, by this evidence. It will also be 
interesting to see, in this letter of May 1, Judge Marshall's opinion 
concerning Mr. Clay's "two letters to Mr. Blair," which, till 
finally published in 1844, were so much misrepresented. The 
chief-justice's letter to the editor of the Richmond Whig, is a 
strong one, drawing forth the inmost feelings of his soul, as they 
regard this great crime : " From the strong sense I felt of the 



422 



PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 



injustice of the charge of corruption against the president and sec 
'etary of state." The deep sympathy manifested by the chief- 
justice on this occasion, will be appreciated, as it evinces hi? 
judgment on the enormity of the offence. 

Mr. Madison's brief note, considering his position in retirement, 
and his general character of coolness on all occasions, is even warm : 
^'■Icould not peruse the appeal you have made, without being sensible 
of the weight of testimony it exhibits." The substance of the same 
documents is in this chapter and the preceding. The strong 
opinion expressed by Mr. Webster, in his note of January 1, 1828, 
is based on the same disclosures : "1 am satisfied, 2ipo7i my con- 
science, that the whole business originated with General Jackson 
himself." Mr. Webster's shrewd guess about Mr. Buchanan, 
soon proved him a true prophet. 

Notwithstanding Mr. Adams was involved in the accusation, it 
was chiefly aimed against Mr. Clay. It was never indeed pretend- 
ed, that Mr. Adams was personally concerned in the alleged nego- 
tiations. Even if it had been, his subsequent history would rescue 
him from the implication. The weight of his letter to the New 
Jersey committee, in 1829, will be felt by all ; and when, as an 
old man, trembling on the verge of the grave, in 1843, he makes 
his appeal to the tribunal of "Eternal Justice," declaring that he 
"will pronounce the charges false" in that place, "should they 
have found their way to that throne," it is enough ! There is no 
man living, that will presume to question the truth of such evi- 
dence. 

The certified copy of the action of the legislature of Tennessee 
on this subject, in 1844, is entitled to special consideration. The 
letter of General Hamilton to the Hon. John White, which was 
occasioned by General Jackson's card of the 3d of May, 1844, to 
the editor of the Nashville Union, reaffirming his charge against 
Mr. Clay, besides that it is of great force as an expression of his 
opinion in exculpation of Mr. Clay, and as the evidence of a Jack- 
son man through all that battle, has in it a most remarkable and 
mstructive confession, as to the motive of the charge against Mr. 
Clay, in its origin and continuance : " Which constituted the 
ELECTIONEERING STAPLE of our party, during the four years' 
war, which ended in our triumph in 1829." How General Ham- 
ilton, believing in the innocence of Mr. Clay, and in his character 
as a man of " unsullied personal honor," as he professes, could 
lend his name, his influence, and his efforts, to sustain the credit 



THE WITNESSES. 423 

of, and to give currency to, such an " electioneering staple," false 
and foul as he knew it to be, and how he could rejoice in a triumph 
purchased by such means, is a problem for himself to solve. The 
remarks of General Hamilton, that " it would have been a work 
of supererogation, on the part of Mr. Clay, to have made a bar- 
gain," and that, in going into the state department, " he relinquish- 
ed a position in the house of representatives, far more desirable, 
and of more influence and authority,'^ are not more forcible, than 
sensible; and his confession, that " the charge constituted the elec- 
tioneering staple," is as true, as it is astonishing ! 

The communication to the author from Mr. Hale, the editor of 
the Fayetteville Observer — the same gentleman, who first gave to 
the public Carter Beverley's letter of the 8th of March, 1827 — is 
important evidence. 

Mr. Clay's confidential letter to Judge Brooke, of February 18, 
1825, is one of exciting interest. It was sacredly kept, till in- 
voked from its repose by the author, and having been submitted 
by the judge, it is used, as it ought to be, for the purposes of his- 
tory. All will see, that it sheds a flood of light on that interesting 
and momentous point of time. Not designed for a political end, 
but being a frank communication of private and confidential friend- 
ship, it has slept twenty years in the desk of Judge Brooke, though 
the clearest exposition of that whole matter, that could possibly be 
given. The extracts from the correspondence between Mr. Clay 
and Mr. Crawford, will produce some surprise, considering the 
relations of the two gentlemen. 

It will be seen, by the brevity and point of Mr. Clay's note of 
the 14th of February, 1825, to Judge Brooke, that it was written 
expressly and solely to ask counsel of a bosom friend : " I am 
offered the state department. What shall I do?" That counsel 
was given ; and the note of the 18th is a statement of the grounds 
of decision. These are singularly instructive facts ! The extract 
from Mr. Clay's note to Judge Brooke, of Aug. 14, 1827, is even 
more remarkable, as it now appears, that Mr. Clay knew it, and 
yet never told it in public ! He was too magnanimous ! 

But the most remarkable witness is poor, unfortunate Carter 
Beverley ! No wonder that Mr. Clay, when interrupted in his 
speech at Lexington, June 9, 1842, by a voice, which cried out, 
and called attention to this recantation, turned awiy from it with 
disgust and loathing, and said, with great earnestness and empha- 
sis : " I want no testi:iiOny — here, here, here — [repeatedly touch- 

VoL. I.— -26 



424 PROOF OF A NEGATIVE. 

ing his heart] — here is the best of all witnesses of iny inno- 
cence." 

One can not read Carter Beverley's letter of recantation to 
Mr. Clay, but with sadness I Sadness, to think of the mischief he was 
employed to do ; sadness, to behold him coming so late, and with 
such bad grace, to acknowledge his great offence, after having been 
" long ago convinced ;" sadness, in view of the melancholy picture 
of human frailty, exhibited in himself; and sadness, deep sadness, 
at the thought, that the example of such a penitent, evincing, as it 
does, the greatness and turpitude of the crime, in which he had 
been a participant and leading agent, should have so little effect 
for good on other offenders, and on the public mind ! Alas ! he 
had done an irreparable mischief! A mischief, for which his sor- 
row can never atone — which his retraction can never obliterate ! 
Doubtless, if he had not been thought fit to do it, another agent 
would have been found. There is, therefore, this benefit accruing 
from the selection : He, the first apostle, at last certifies to 
the crime, and seeks to atone for it ! 

Some may say, that evidence of this kind, and to the extent 
given in this chapter, is superfluous. As a portion of history, it is 
not so ; it is not so, in justice to Mr. Clay ; it is not so, for the 
practical uses of political society. One of the greatest and most 
complicated crimes, in the social and political history of mankind, 
involving momentous, stupendous consequences, has been com- 
mitted ; and notwithstanding, that one generation has passed away, 
the wiong is still maintained ; the moiety of a great nation have 
never yet seen it in its true light ; hundreds of thousands believe 
in the wrong, by authority ; one class of persons are influenced by 
one set of facts, another by another ; and it therefore becomes ne- 
cessary, for the attainment of the ends of truth and justice, to ex- 
hibit this piece of history in all its essential parts. Setting aside 
the great fact established in the preceding chapters, (o wit, that the 
conspirators have not only failed to exhibit a particle of evidence 
in support of their charges, but have convicted themselves of the 
crime they charge on others, it can not but be very striking to all 
reflecting minds, that the negative of the charge, as it respects 
Mr. Clay, is so fully and completely proved. Nothing within the 
range of evideLce is left, except to exhibit the different fo/ms and 
degrees of the crime of the conspirators. 

It will perhaps be said : " J9e mortuis nil, nisi bonum." Doubt- 



THE WITNESSES. 425 

less, this is a good, a charitable, a Christian, and a useful maxim, 

where public and private justice are not concerned. But neither 

charity, n»r forbearance, can silence the claims of justice. 

" It often falls, in course of common life, 
That right long time is overborne of wrong. 
Through av'rice, or power, or guile, or strife ; 
But justice, though her doom she do prolong. 
Yet, at the last, she will her own cause right." — Spenser. 

Justice, with man or God, when it concerns the public, can not 
yield to charity ; and the greater the wrong, so much greater the 
importance, so much more imperative the duty, of exposure, and 
of a suitable visitation. Wrong persisted in, is doubly, in a mani- 
fold degree, criminal ; and if it be a wrong to society, as well as 
to individuals, it is for that reason still more aggravated. The 
wrong now under consideration, regards not simply two parties as 
individuals, but parties composed of numerous individuals. It is 
a wrong in which society on a large scale, in which a nation, is 
concerned ; and it is a wrong persisted in. If it had been 
given up, or atoned for, in such ways as wrongdoers in society are 
required to atone, the case would have been different, and it would 
be censurable to keep the subject alive. But justice still sits in 
the seat of controversy, and demands, not only scrutiny, but her 
award ; and she will never cease to call for it, till judgment is ren- 
dered. The aggressive party has made the issue, and sustains 
IT. So far as human judgment is concerned, therefore, it can only 
be decided by the common rules of evidence. In such a case, so 
important as respects the party assailed, and so momentous in its 
bearings on society, it would not only be wrong, but criminal, to 
let it go by default. It must necessarily be submitted to public 
judgment, to the judgment of mankind, and of posterity. 



426 THB GREAT CONSPIRACY 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

Unity of the Plot. — Another Question. — Witnesses to it. — Singular Result. — ^The 
Truth of the whole Matter. — Proposals of Bargain made to Mr. Clay. — One 
through Mr. Buchanan. — One through Mr. Houston. — Crime and Consequences 
of the Plot. 

In General Jackson's address to the public, July 18th, 1827, 
he says : " The origin — the beginning of this matter, was at 
my own house and fireside — where, surely, a freeman may be per- 
mitted to speak on public topics, without having ascribed to him 
improper designs. / have not gone into the highways and market- 
places, to proclaim my opinions.''^ Without stopping to reflect, 
that, of all places, a man's " own fireside" should be sacred to 
truth, charity, and fairness ; or that, considering " the crowd of 
company" present, representing all parts of the Union, it was in 
fact, a scene of publicity somewhat broader than "highways and 
market-places" — the following certificates and facts will show, that 
•' the origin — the beginning of this matter," was not at General 
Jackson's " own house and fireside," on the 8th of March, 

1827.* 

• " Philadelphia, October 2, 1827. 

•' Sir : In answer to yours of yesterday's date, requesting me to state to you the 
particulars of some remarks, which you were informed I had heard General Jack- 
son use on the subject of the last presidential election, I have to state, that on 
my way down the Ohio, from Wheeling to Cincinnati, in the month of March, 
1825, on board the steamer General Neville, among many other passengers, were 
General Jackson, and a number of gentlemen from Pennsylvania, some of whom 
remarked to the general that they regretted that he had not been elected president, 
instead of Mr. Adams. General Jackson replied, that if he would have made the 
same promises and offers to Mr. Clay, that Mr. Adams had done, he (General Jack- 
son) would then, in that case, have been in the presidential chair. But he would 
make no promises to any ; that, if he went to the presidential chair, he would g(? 
with clean hands, and uncontrolled by any one. 

" These remarks of General Jackson were made in the hearing of Mr. James 
Parker, of Chester county, Mr. Wm. Crowsdill, of this city, and myself, and a 
number of other gentlemen unknown to me. 

" I am most respectfully yours, &c., '* Daxiel Large. 

" Sam'l Witherell, Esq." 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 427 

When a witness on the stand begins to lose character, b) con- 
tradiction of himself, or by manifest pains to conceal truth, or to 
support error, he breaks down fast with the court, jury, and spec- 

" Philadelphia, Oct. 5, 1827. 
" The statement made by Mr. Daniel Large, in the prefixed letter, is a faithful 
account of General Jackson's conversation, on the occasion alluded to. 

" WiLUAM CrOWSDILL." 

"In the winter of l826-'7, Mr. Thos. Sloan, of Brownsville, Pa., in a conver- 
sation in my barroom, respecting the election of the president of the United States, 
and of the corrupt bargain and intrigue which procured his election, expressed his 
opinion to be, that such practices had been resorted to by Mr. Clay and his friends 
and justified his belief by stating, that General Jackson had informed him so, in a con- 
versation with him at Brownsville, and which was in substance the same since com- 
municated to the public by General Jackson. I further state, that I lately wrote to 
Mr. Sloan, requesting him to give a certificate of General Jackson's statement to 
him, but have not received his answer. " Richard Simms 

" Wheeling, Dec. 19, 1827." 

"In the winter of 1826-'7, Mr. Thos. Sloan, of Brownsville, in a conversation 
in my presence, respecting the election of the present president of the United 
States, and of the corrupt bargain and intrigue, which procured his election, ex- 
pressed his opinion to be, that such practices had been resorted to by Mr. Clay ; 
and justified his belief, by relating a conversation which he had had with General 
Jackson on that subject at Brownsville, on his return home from Washington, after 
the election. Mr. Sloan rehearsed at length the statement made to him by the gen- 
eral, and which was in substance the same since communicated to the public by Gen- 
eral Jackson. Mr. Sloan further said, that a company of which he wag one, had 
met the general near to Brownsville, and escorted him into town, which was the 
occasion on which he had made the communication referred to. 

" Alden H. Howe. 

"Wheeling, Va., December 19, 1827." 

C^For the foregoing documents, see Niles's Register, vol. xxxiii. 

STATEMENT OF WILLIAM SAMPLE, TRANSMITTED IN A LETTER TO MR. CLAY, 

" On Tuesday, the 22d of March, 1825, when General Jackson was on his way 
from Washington city, to his residence in Tennessee, he, with a number of citizens 
of Washington, Pennsylvania, and of the county, were in the public house of Mr. 
Chambers, innkeeper, West Alexandria, Pennsylvania. Mr. Edward McGlaugh- 
lin was introduced to the general ; and after the common salutation of shaking 
hands, Mr. E. McGlaughlin said : ' Well, general, we did all we could for you 
here; but the rascals at Washington cheated you out of it.' To this expression 
General Jackson made the following reply : ' Indeed, my old friend, there was 
cheating, and corruption, and bribery, too. The editors of the National Intelli- 
gencer were bribed to suppress the publication of honest George Kremer's letter.' 
Mr. McGlaughlin's introduction was at his own solicitation, in a public house, in 
the presence of a room-full of gentlemen ; and the conversation also in the same 
public house, in the presence of a large and promiscuous company. 

" Samuel Workman, Thomas Morgan, Joseph Henderson, Josiah Trucsdall, 
William Sample, and others." 

"Brownsville, February 28, 1828. 
"Dear Sir: Your favor has been received, and in pursuance of your request, 
I called on Mr. Sloan, to obtain a certificate of the conversation that took place 
between him and General Jackson, which he peremptorily refused to give. There- 
fore, in conformity with your further request, that, in case of a non compliance, I 
would transmit to you the purport of that conversation delivered lo me by Mr. 
Sloan, that took place between him and the genera], I therefore do certify, that I 
have repeatedly heard him observe, in substance, as follows : That he, Mr. 
Sloan, was one of a committee, that left Brownsville to meet General Jackson, on 
his return from Washington city, in 1825; that, while in his company, he rbserved 
to the general, that there had been much said, respecting a corrupt bargain and 
intrigue, pending the presidential election ; that he wished to ascertain from him. 



428 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

tators, and is doomed to severe handling by the opposing counsel. 
After what has already been disclosed of the character of General 
Jackson, in the progress of this conspiracy, no one will be sur- 

if there was any foundation to justify the report. The general observed, that it 
was a delicate matter for him to treat upon. The general then proceeded to state, 
that, early one morning, Mr. Clay called on him, at his lodgings, which was quite 
an unusual circumstance, and after a few compliments had passed, Mr. Clay ob- 
served : ' General, I have no doubt of your election now.' The general stated : ' I 
read his heart, in a moment;' but replied to Mr. Clay, that, 'if elected, he would 
exercise his best judgment in executing the duties of his office;' that Mr. Clay, 
meeting with no encouragement, politely bid him good morning, and left the room; 
and in a few days, he understood, that Mr. Clay had declared himself in favor of 
John Q. Adams. ' This,' said the general, ' Mr.Clay will not have the hardihood to 
stand before me and deny.' The general further stated, by way of comment, that 
there was no doubt, had he observed to Mr. Clay, ' If I am elected, I will do some- 
thing for you,' that he, Jackson, would have been the president. 

'" Isaac Bennet. 
" R. McKee aud Alexander Caldwell, Esqs." 

FROM REV. A. WVLIE. 

"Washington, February 15, 1828. 

" Dear Sir : I received your note of the 12th ultimo, in which you inform me, 
that, ' by a letter just received from H. Clay, he expressed a wish to obtain a state- 
ment in writing from yourself [Mr. Wylie], giving in detail a substantial account 
of that portion of the conversation of General Jackson, which related to himself 
and Mr. Adams, or in other words, the bargain and sale story, and that this state- 
ment is intended for self-protection only.' 

" Your note should have been answered sooner, but that I found myself unable 
to bring up the conversation alluded to, so distinctly to my recollection, as to give 
it in detail. The substance of it, even now, is all that I can pretend to give. 

" When General Jackson arrived at Bunland's, on his return from Congress, in the 
spring of 1825, the agitation of the public mind was extreme, from the belief, then 
prevalent, that his elevation to the presidency had been prevented by intrigue and 
management, on the part of Messrs. Adams and Clay. My own mind, I confess, was 
not altogether undisturbed on this subject, feeling, as the head of a family — who, in 
the common course of nature, must share after me, in the destinies of our beloved 
country — a deep interest in the preservation of our liberties, which I believed, 
from what I knew of the history of republics, were not likely to perish in any 
popular convulsions, until the people themselves should first find their rights in- 
vaded by those in power. Feeling, from the force of such considerations, a sympa- 
thy for General Jackson, I was induced, though I had no previous personal ac- 
quaintance with him, to pay him my respects. The following dialogue took 
place : — 

" j1. You return, general, from a boisterous campaign. 

« B. Yes, sir. 

" ji. One in which you were not quite so successful, as in some former ones. 

" B. My success in those to which you allude, was owing to the firmness of the 
brave men, whom I had the honor to command. 

" J. It is more honorable, however, to lose than to win, in such a contest as 
that lately concluded at the federal city, if, indeed, things were managed, as has 
been reported. 

" B. And who can doubt it ? 

" ji. Why, general, one would hardly suppose, that such men as J. Q. Adams 
and H. Clay, would, in the face of the nation, engage in such a transaction. 

" B. But let any man in his senses, take a view of the circumstances — let him 
compare, for instance, the prediction of honest George Kremer, with its accom- 
plishment. 

" ^. But were not the talents and local situation of Mr. Clay sufficient to justify 
the confident expectation of his appointment ? There is, however, another cir 
cumatance, which, if true, will settle the point. 

" B. What is that ? 

" j1. The proposition that is said to have been made to you — is that a fact ? 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 429 

prised at the glaring inconsistency of the statement above quoted 
from his address to the public, of July 18th, 1827, with the facts 
proved by the documents in the lower margin of this chapter. 

" B. Yes, sir, such a proposition was made. I said to the bearer — ' Go, tell Mr 
Clay, tell Mr. Adams, that, if I go into that chair, I go with clean hands, and a 
pvire heart, and that I had rather see them, together with myself, engulfed to the 
earth's centre, than to compass it by such means.' The very next day or shortly 
after (which of the expressions it was, is not now recollected), Mr. Clay and his 
friends declared for Mr. Adams. 

" Such was the conversation, as nearly as can be recollected. It was rapid, and 
carried on in such a tone of voice, as not to be heard by many in the room. The 
Messrs. Murdocks, who, I believe, were present, must have heard a part of it. 
Most of the sentences were not announced in full, but taken up and answered by 
the parties, as soon as their drift and bearing were understood, except the last, 
which was pronounced emphatically. Of this I am the more certain, as it made 
an impression, which was, on my mind, deep and vivid. 

" The foregoing statement is at the service of Mr. Clay. The allegations 
which it contains against him and Mr. Adams, were believed by me at the time, 
but have, in my view, been losing their evidence, in the course of public inquiry ; 
and now ought either to be sustained by additional proof, or magnanimously aban- 
doned. Otherwise, I should think a reaction in public sentiment may be expected. 
" Yours, with respect, 

"A. Wylie. 

" Thos. M. Griffin, Esq." 

"Bowling Gbeen, February 23, 1828. 

" Deah Sir : Your note of this day has been duly received, requesting me to 
state, whether or not, I was present at a conversation held by General Jackson, at 
the Washington Hall tavern, in this town, in the month of April, 1825, when on 
his way from Washington, in which he made charges of bargain and intrigue 
against Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay. In answer to the above inquiries, I must 
state, that I was at the Washington Hall, on the evening after General Jackson's 
arrival there, when on his way from Washington, in 1825, and heard him convers- 
ing freely respecting Mr. Adams, Mr. Clay, and the presidential election, in which 
conversation I heard General Jackson say, that he would not have the office of 
president of the United States, if he had to obtain it by bargain, corruption, and 
intrigue, as Mr. Adams had done. This was the first time I had ever heard the 
celebrated bargain and intrigue mentioned, which has since made so much noise 
throughout the United States. 

" Respectfully, your obedient servant, 

"John Keel. 

« Col. R. Johnson." 

"Bowling Green, February 1, 1828. 
" I think it was some time in the month of April, 1825, that General Jackson, 
on his return from the city, with his family, put up at the Washington Hall tavern, 
in this place, and remained until the next day, after breakfast. In the course of 
the afternoon of the day of his arrival, many citizens of this place called to see 
him. I then lived at the Washington Hall tavern. He appeared to converse 
freely with the company, who were there, on the subject of the presidential elec- 
tion. I heard him repeatedly speaking of Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay ; and in 
speaking of the presidential election,! understood him to say, that propositions had 
been made to him [General Jackson], either by or through the friends of Mr. Clay — 
I do not now distinctly recollect, whether it was by Mr. Clay's friends, or ihrmigh 
Mr. Clay's friends — that, if General Jackson would say he would* make Mr. Clay 
secretary of state, Mr. Clay and his friends would vote for him, and that they 
■would settle the presidential election in one hour ; and I further understood Gen- 
eral Jackson, that he told the messenger, that he might so back and tell Mr. Clay, 
that he would rather see the earth open and swallow both himself, Mr. Clay, and 
their friends, up together, than it should be said he got into the presidential chair 
by bargain or intrigue, on his part. 

" CuTHBEBT T Jones." 



430 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

Apart from the previous disclosures, it would be an astoundint^ 
development. But as the facts now stand, it is not so much so, 
though it is a just occasion of wonder. That a man who had been 
in the habit of going, not only " into highways and market-places," 
but into taverns and steamboats, into promiscuous gatherings and 
crowds, in many parts, and several states of the Union, "to pro- 
claim" not only his " opinions,^^ in regard to this matter, but to re- 
affirm and reiterate all the facts alleged to have taken place in 
the " BARGAIN," and occasionally adding thereunto some very im- 
portant allegations of fact, with new versions and new comments, 
equally important — should deliberately and solemnly state, in an 
address to the public, that he had never done so ; that " the origin 
— the beginning of this matter, was at his own house and fire- 
side," some two years after the statements of the same kind, proved 
to have been made by himself, at sundry times, in sundry places, 
to a great number and variety of individuals, in the most public 
manner — may well be regarded with some astonishment ! The 
conclusion is natural, and will be believed — if the facts stated by 
these witnesses are correct — that the habit of making these state- 
ments, was never suspended, from the spring of 1825, to the 8th 
of March, 1827, when they were made by him at his '* own house 

"Frankfort, Kentucky, March 21, 1828. 

« Dear Sir:* • • • • • • • 

" In your vindication, you refer to a conversation had by General Jackson, in 
Bowling Green, upon his return from Congress, after the election of Mr. Adams 
to the presidency. I was present at one of these conversations, when the general 
observed, in speaking of the late election, that ' the people had been cheated ; that, 
{he corruptions and intrigues of Washington had defeated the will of the people, in 
the election of their president.' I waited till this branch of the conversation was 
closed, and finding no palliative, left the company, which was large, and composed 
of ladies and gentlemen, of the first respectability, and at a public tavern. Sev- 
eral followed, and his remarks became the subject of street conversation, in which 
I remarked, that, as highly as I was disposed to think of the general, particularly 
for his military success, I could not approve such a course ; that, if corruption 
existed, and that known to him, he surely should not have been the first to greet 
Mr. Adams upon his elevation ; and that, if you had participated, it was his duty 
to have exposed it when your nomination was before the senate. 

" It may be well to remark, that the general may have thought, that he was 
wholly surrounded by his political friends, as he had been well received there by 
the citizens. " Respectfully, yours, 

"J. U. Waring. 

« Hon. H. Clay. 

" P. S. By a sense of duty to an injured and much-persecuted man, I have been 
induced to address this letter to you, and you are at liberty to use it, as you may 
think proper." 

For the foregoing six documents see Niles's Register, vol. xixiv. 

" That General Jackson has spoken of such overtures, we personally kfiow." — 
U. S. Telegraph, April 26, 1827. " We stated expressly that General Jackson 
Bpoke of these overtures, in March, 1825, before he was •nnounced by the legis- 
lature of Tennessee as a candidate." — lb., Jpril 28, 1827. 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 431 

and fireside," in the presence of " a crowd of company," from 
different parts of the Union. It is certain, they were constantly 
made in the public press devoted to General Jackson's interests, 
as the annals of the political warfare of that time, will show. It 
is also certain, that more or less correspondence, in relation to this 
affair, was, in the meantime, going on, a part of it resting on the 
fivot of the desk of Duff Green, editor of the United States Tel- 
egraph, at Washington, which was the central organ of General 
Jackson. See, in the note, the extracts from that paper, of April 
26th and 28th, 1827, in connexion with Mr. Green's correspon- 
dence with Mr. Buchanan, in 1826 and 1827, as recognised by the 
latter in his letter to the public, of August 8th, 1S27, parts of 
which have already been given. Can it be supposed, that this 
correspondence was limited to this narrow circle? But even this 
is enough to show that the subject was constantly, uninterruptedly, 
from the spring of 1825 to the spring of 1827, in agitation, hy 
correspondence among General Jackson's friends. And when it is \ 
seen that the editor of the Telegraph is in correspondence with \ 
Mr. Buchanan, in 1826 and 1827, advising him that he is General 
Jackson's witness, asking him what he will certify to, &c., can it 
be imagined that there is no correspondence going on, at the same 
time, between the editor and General Jackson ? It is incontestable 
that there must have been such a correspondence, direct or indi- 
rect — it is no matter which — else how could Gen. Green know 
that Mr. Buchanan was General Jackson's witness ? That the 
correspondence was direct^ is most probable. If it were indirect 
and mediate, it would only prove a more extended ramification of 
the conspiracy. There is reason to suppose — the evidence is 
strong enough for a court and jury — that Duff Green was the 
PIVOT of one, probably not a small, sphere of this correspondence. 
Most persons will now believe, that General Jackson was in the 
habit of communicating on this subject, with tne editor of the 
Telegraph, directly or indirectly. It was not, pernaps, necessary, 
that it should be frequent ; but the evidence of the editor himself 
is sufiicient to show, that there was a permanent understanding be- 
tween them. In April, 1827, he says : " That General Jackson 
has spoken of such overtures, we personally know.' — •' We stated 
explicitly, that General Jackson spoke of these ovenures in March, 
1825." 

All this leads to a very important practical mteience, viz., that 
this " crowd of company" at the Hermitage, Marcn 8th, 1827, 



432 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

among whom were " seven Virginians," were not there for nothing 
— more especially when it is considered, that the statement, pro- 
lific of such momentous results, which was at that time and place 
made "before all the company," was that very day posted off by 
Mr. Beverley, to be proclaimed publicly throughout the Union ! 
After what has been proved, even Charity, with all her heavenly 
kindness, can hardly spread her mantle broad enough, to " hide" 
such " a multitude of sins," as seem bundled up in this complica- 
ted affair. 

Admitting for a moment — what a just ground of suspicion would 
seem now to suggest — that this " crowd of company," with " seven 
Virginians," were at the Hermitage on more important business 
than mere compliment ; that it was a common feeling of this de- 
liberative conclave, that the exigencies of the campaign before 
them, demanded a rouser ; that the old charge of " bargain and 
sale," against Messrs. Adams and Clay, on its old basis, without 
any tangible responsibility, although it had done well, had become 
rather stale ; that, though all the faithful, after the example of their 
leader, had not ceased to proclaim it, in " highways and market- 
places," in taverns and steamboats, on their journeys, and thsough 
the press, still there was nobody to say, " 1 will stand to it ;" that 
a new edition, with improvements, and a responsible utterance, 
was required ; and that, if General Jackson would now and hence- 
forth " take the responsibility," it would go like wildfire ! Would 
not the party sustain him, and carry him through ? Ways had 
been devised to manage it hitherto, under the old aspects of the 
plan, and all responsibility had been successfully evaded. It was 
a bold push at first ; it required nothing but boldness to carry it on 
to a consummation. 

It is not necessary to suppose, that a formal debate of this kind 
was passed through, to establish the probability of such a new 
organization of the conspiracy. Men, so disposed, may have such 
thoughts, when they dare not give them an audible expression in 
so many words. It was enough that the question should have 
been asked General Jackson in the presence of that " crowd of 
company," as is admitted, and as was published by themselves ; — 
enough that he should have answered it, " freely and frankly, hav- 
ing no motive for concealment," as he acknowledges he did ; — 
enough, that every man in that presence had common sense, to 
see, at a glance, the scope, bearing, and tremendous energy, on the 
public mind, of such an open declaration, from such authorifv. 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 433 

and for public use. Nothing more was required ; and it would 
have been a miracle, if it had not been published, when no restric- 
tion was imposed. It would have been next to a miracle, if every 
one present had not understood, as distinctly as if it were an- 
nounced in set phrase, that it was intended to be published, a^ 
coming from GencralJacTcson himself. If it was not so understood, 
why did Mr. Beverley go and publish it that very day? And 
if it was not so intended, why was he never rebuked for it ? If it 
was not so intended, why did General Jackson so kindly reply to 
Mr. Beverley's letter of the 15th of May, from Louisville, which 
confessed what he had done, and give him a new and corrected 
edition of the story, with minute and circumstantial detail, enjoinino- 
him (Mr. Beverley) to " correct" his own version by this, as 
appears in General Jackson's letter of the 6th of June, 1S27? 

In this view, the meeting of General Jackson's friends at the 
Hermitage, in March, 1827, from all parts of the Union, was a 
very important and momentous one. They had made a good 
start of the " bargain and sale" story in the first place, and a good 
use of it for more than two years — if the certificates in this chap- 
ter may be taken in evidence. It had turned out a vastly produc- 
tive capital, gone abroad, and infected the entire mind of the nation. 
Let it go forth in this new form, from this point, endorsed by such 
authority, giving certainty to that which was before uncertain, and 
what could stand before it, for the presidential campaign then about 
to open ? There might be difficulties, but they must be braved. 
The responsibility must be assumed. The advantages must ne- 
cessarily be a thousand to one of the disadvantages. Such were 
the facts, and such are the suyjposed reasons. If anybody can 
find better reasons, it is fair to propound them. The facts 
abide. 

A word on the evidence contai' ed in this chapter, as compared 
with General Jackson's declaration of July 18th, 1827, that *' the 
ORIGIN — the BEGINNING of this matter [the controversy as it stood 
at that time, himself the accuser], was at my own house and fire- 
side. . . . I have not gone into highways and market-])laces to jjro- 
claim my ojjinions.^^ If this were a casual statement, made in 
conversation, where the notes of memory might be supposed to lie 
hidden in the rubbish of the mind, it ought not, perhaps, to be 
severely criticised, though it were not exactly true. But it is a 
deliberate, solemn asseveration, carefully prepared for the public 
eye, for important, not to say for momentous public purposes. It 



434 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

is made with the air and apparent confidence of truth ; and the 
author, after having taken up this position, turns round, and by al- 
lusion to facts of some notoriety, implicates Mr. Clay in the im- 
propriety, which he himself so openly disclaims : " In this, I feel, 
that I have differed from some who, even at public dinner-tables, 
have not scrupled to consider me a legitimate subject of speech, 
for the entertainment of the company." There is, therefore, a 
twofold responsibility here : first, for the correctness of the state- 
ment, and next, for the self-glorifying accusation, that is brought 
forward, on the assumption, and in comparison of the statement as 
a fact. But it is painful to observe how far the statement varies 
from truth, according to the evidence of these witnesses. Duff 
Green, editor of the Telegraph, most friendly to himself, would 
seem to prove, in this and another place, that General Jackson had 
not only uttered this charge, on his own responsibility, before he 
left Washington, in the spring of 1825, but it may fairly be in- 
ferred, as before shown, that in the interval, down to the spring of 
1827, he was in communication with the editor of that journal, on 
the assumption of the truth of this charge, with a view to future 
action ! The evidence is conclusive, that, when he made his pub- 
lic entry into Brownsville, Pa., on his return home, in the spring 
of 1825, he was very open and unreserved, in representing these 
charges as worthy of full credit ; and one of the witnesses, Isaac 
Bennet, gives a very extraordinary version to one of these state- 
ments, by which the idea is clearly conveyed, that Mr. Clay him- 
self called on General Jackson early one morning, on the errand 
of " bargain," and was repulsed ! The usual form of the story 
is supported by several witnesses, as having been publicly rehearsed 
by General Jackson, at Brownsville, at Washington, at East Alex- 
andria, all in Pennsylvania ; on the steamboat Neville, in descend- 
ing the Ohio ; at Bowling Green, Kentucky, and other places. 
The dialogue " at Bunland's," between General Jackson and the 
Rev. Mr. Wylie, who called on him as a friend, to express a sym- 
pathy and concern for the fraud practised on the general by the 
" bargain," is remarkable and instructive, in which the general 
commits himself most especially, decidedly, and emphatically, in 
the charge on Messrs. Adams and Clay. At Bowling Green, so 
much was said by General Jackson on this subject, and in the 
presence of so many persons, that it became a topic of " street 
conversation." It would seem, that he was full of the matter, 
throughout his journey, from the city of Washington to the Her- 



ITS DEVKLOPMENT. 435 

milage, in the spring of 1825. The evidence, circumstantial and 
presumptive, of its having been in continual agitation, between 
himself and others, by correspondence and otherwise, from that 
time to the spring of 1827, can hardly be other than convincing. 
And yet he solemnly avers, that " the origin — the beginning of 
this matter, was at his own house and fireside," on the Sth of 
March, 1827 ! 

The reasons of this new start of the accusation, in the spring of 
1827, in the manner, and under the circumstances, related, are 
obvious. In the first place, the charge had not been regarded as 
having a definite, tangible responsibility. Though a man talks 
*' in highways and market-places," in taverns and steamboats, and 
thereby excites attention, makes an impression, and causes others 
to talk, if he is a man of consequence, and his topic is interesting, 
still it is not like coming out before the public, in a solemn docu- 
mentary form, supporting it by his name. Common gossip is 
heard only by a few, and has comparatively a limited influence. 
But public epistles, on political themes, from distinguished per- 
sons, go everywhere, and go quickly. On a subject of so much 
interest, as that now under consideration, at such a time, the new 
form, and definite responsibility, under which it was sent forth, at- 
tracted the attention of the whole nation at once, and was electri- 
fying in its effect. From the comparatively dull round, into which 
the story had fallen, it was lifted and put in the circle of the winds ; 
the clouds were charged with it ; and they swept over the land with 
the roar of a tempest, discharging their fires in every direction, on 
every hill and plain. 

It is now placed beyond denial, by the evidence on record, that 
the suggestion was made, and apparently entertained, in the inter- 
view between General Jackson and Mr. Buchanan, that " it was 
right to fight the intriguers with their own weapons." There is 
no evidence from any quarter, except his own statement, that Gen- 
eral Jackson was offended at this suggestion ; but, on the contra- 
ry, that it was not disagreeable to him. When he afterward im- 
bibed, or conceived, or began to cherish, what Mr. Buchanan calls 
his " erroneous impression," his " mistake," to wit, that Mr. Clay, 
or Mr. Clay's friends, or both, had made overtures — " a proposi- 
tion of bargain" — to him (General Jackson), this was very offen- 
sive ; and admitting its truth, it ought to have been so. It will be 
observed, that this is what he affects to quarrel with. But Mr. 



436 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 



Buchanan, his only witness, says, it is all a "mistake," an "erro- 
neous impression ;" and he goes on to tell, how the general proba- 
bly came by it, as before seen. 

Mr. Buchanan, doubtless willing to support the general, as well 
as he could, having read the general's address, and not unnaturally 
surveyed his own position, present and prospective, seems disposed 
to indulge the general's taste for strong expressions in compliment 
to himself, and recites one of them, used in this interview — a little 
profane — but bearing on a very different point from that of an over- 
ture from Mr. Clay to General Jackson. Mr. Buchanan, as ap- 
pears by the evidence, had approached the general for two objects : 
To ascertain, first, whether General Jackson had said, as was ru- 
mored, that he, if elected president, should continue Mr. Adams 
secretary of state. This point was settled by the interview, ac- 
cording to Mr. Buchanan, that he had not said so. But Mr. Bu- 
chanan and Mr. Markley had agreed — and it was especially an 
object with Mr. Buchanan, for his ulterior designs — that it was 
important to gain one point more with the general, viz., to get him 
to say, that he would not continue, or appoint, Mr. Adams. This, 
it seems, according to Mr. Buchanan the general declined, and, in 
doing so, is represented by Mr. B. as using the following strong 
expressions : — 

" These were secrets he would keep to himself; he would con- 
ceal them from the very hairs of his head ; if he believed his right 
hand then knew what his left would do, on the subject of appoint- 
ments to office, he would cut it off, and cast it into the fire ; and 
if he should ever be elected president, it would be without solici- 
tation, or intrigue, on his part." 

This, in any other case, might naturally be a sweet little mor- 
ceau to the general. But it is not a message to Mr. Clay and his 
friends ; there is no fury in it ; no opening of the earth to swallow 
up all parties ; but, what ought to be satisfactory to anybody, not 
over-exacting, there is a martyr-spirit in it, and at least a high pre- 
tension to extraordinary virtue. Nor does this apply to an over- 
ture from Mr. Clay, or friends, to General Jackson ; but to one 
part of a proposal coming from his own friends. He was not quite 
prepared to go that far. It is, in short, a disclaimer of "intrigue," 
at the very moment, and in the act by which he consents to it ' 
His right hand does not know what his left is doing, and by his 
own rule, he is entitled to save both. Has not Mr. Buchanan told 
him what the plan is, and does he not consent to it all ? 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 437 

It should be observed, that these witnesses are not giving evi- 
dence in court, under the solemn sanction, " to tell the truth, the 
whole truth, and nothing but the truth ;" but each one is telling a 
story for his own personal end — an end in which his strongest 
passions are concerned — in the case of General Jackson most es- 
pecially. Mr. Buchanan is telling a story to get out of a difficulty, 
in which not only he, but his chief, is involved. It is not proposed 
here to assail their evidence, any further than they have done it 
among themselves ; but it is proper to suggest, that, not being 
obliged to tell the whole truth, they have probably confined them- 
selves chiefly to that which suits their own purposes ; and it need 
not be said, that a fact omitted, is sometimes essential to the truth. 
It is not supposed, for example, that Mr. Buchanan has narrated 
everything that took place between him and General Jackson. By 
going back to Mr. Markley's story, much light is cast upon this 
interview. Mr. Buchanan, however, has said enough to develop 
the kernel of the treason, viewing it in connexion with what all of 
them have said. Observe, with what caution he begins : — 

" While we were walking together upon the street, I introduced 
the subject. I told him, I wished to ask him a question, in rela- 
tion to the presideotial election ; that I knew he was unwilling to 
converse upon the subject ; that, therefore, if he deemed the ques- 
tion improper, he might refuse to give it an answer ; that my only 
motive in asking it, was friendship for him ; and I trusted he would 
excuse me, for thus introducing a subject, about which I knew he 
wished to be silent." 

This language suggests two thoughts : First, the unction of flat- 
tery is pretty copiously employed. It does not appear, from all 
that has transpired, that the general was so reluctant to talk upon 
this subject ; it does not appear, that he was a man of such exquis- 
ite delicacy of feeling. It is manifest, from the air of this story 
that Mr. Buchanan felt some solicitude about the result of his er- 
rand. Why? Had he a proposal to make, that would shock 
General Jackson? General Jackson avers, that a " proposition 
of bargain" was made to him on that occasion, though Mr. Bu- 
chanan has very philosophically shown, how he [the general] fell 
into an error. 

Mr. Buchanan continues : — 

" His reply was comphmentary to myself, and accompanied 
with a request, that I would proceed. I then stated to him, there 
was a report in circulation, that he had determined he would ap- 
point Mr. Adams secretary of state, in case he were elected presi- 



438 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

dent, and that I wished to ascertain from him, whether he haa 
ever intimated such an intention ; that he must at once 'perceive how 
injurious to his election S7ich a report might be ; that no doubt there 
were several able and ambitious men in the country — among whom 
I thought Mr. Clay might he included — who were aspiring to that 
office ; and, if it were believed, he had already determined to ap- 
point his chief competitor, it might have a most unhappy effect 
upon their exertions, and those of their friends ; that, unless he 
had determined, I thought this report should be promptly contra- 
dicted, under his own authority. I mentioned it had already done 
him some injury, and proceeded to relate to him the substance of 
the conversation I had held with Mr. Markley." 

The above citation from Mr. Buchanan, will probably receive 
some light by collateral citations from Mr. Markley and Major 
Eaton. Mr. Markley says: — 

" Mr. Buchanan asked, if I had seen Mr. Clay, and whether I 
had had any conversation with him, touching the presidential elec- 
tion. I replied, that I had seen him in the house, but had had no 
conversation with him on that subject ; but said, I was anxious to 
get an opportunity to have a conversation with him, as I felt a 
great anxiety, that he should vote with Pennsylvania. Mr. Bu- 
chanan replied, that no one felt more anxious, ybr various reasons, 
than he did himself; that it was important, not only for the success 
of General Jackson'' s election, that Mr. Clay should, vote with Penn- 
sylvania, hut on account of his ulterior political prospects, 
declaring, that he \^Mr. B.] hoped to see Mr. Clay president of the 
United States ; and that was another reason why he should like to 
see Mr. Clay secretary of state, in case General Jackson were elected, 
and that, if he were certain that Mr. Clay^s views were favorable to 
General Jackson^s election, he would take an opportunity of talking 
with General Jackson on the subject, or get Major Eaton to do so ; 
that he thought, by doing so, he would confer a particular benefit on 
the country, and that he could see nothing wrong in it." 

Mr. Markley says further : — 

" From the recollection I have of the conversation, my impres- 
sions are, that the object of his [Mr. B.'s] visit that evening, was 
to urge the propriety of my seeing Mr. Clay, and to give him my 
views as to the importance of his identifying himself with Pennsyl- 
vania, in the support of General Jackson. I entertained no doubt, 
that Mr. Buchanan was honestly determined, that no exertions on 
his part should be wanting, and that he felt confident he could 
speak with certainty, as to the great mass of General Jackson's 
friends, that, in case of the election of General Jackson, they would 
press upon him the appointment of Mr. Clay, as secretary of state. 
Mr. Buchanan concurred with me in opinion, that Pennsylvania 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 439 

would prefer Mr. Clay's appointment, to that of any other person, 
as secretary of state ; and from the obhgation the general was un- 
der to Pennsylvania, that he would go far to gratify her wishes, and 
that, therefore, he believed, if the general were elected, he would ap- 
point Mr. Clay.'''' 

Major Eaton says : — 

" In January, 1825, a few days before it had been known, that 
Mr. Clay and his friends had declared in favor of Mr. Adams, I 
was called upon by Mr. Buchanan, of Pennsylvania. He said, it 
was pretty well ascertained, that overtures were making by the 
friends of Adams, on the subject of cabinet a'pjpointments ; that 
Jackson should fight them with their own weapons. He said, the 
opinion was, that Jackson would retain Adams [who was then sec- 
retary of state under Mr. Monroe], and that it was doing him in- 
jury ; that the general should state whom he would make secre- 
tary of state, and desired, that I would name it to him. Mr. 
Buchanan remarked, if he will merely say, he will not retain Mr. 
Adams, that will answer. I repUed, that he [Mr. B.] knew him 
[Jackson] well, and might talk with him, as well as I could. Mr. 
Buchanan then said, that on the next day, before the general went 
to the capitol, he would call. He did so, as I afterward under- 
stood." 

Now, put THAT, and that, and that, together — Mr. Buchan- 
an's talk with General Jackson, as represented by himself, and his 
talk with Mr. Markley and Major Eaton, as represented by them 
— and this matter stands in new and clear light. It was not to be 
expected, that Mr. Buchanan would rehearse to the public, every- 
thing he had said in such a private, confidential conversation with 
General Jackson. No man is bound to give evidence against him- 
self. But, from this programme, previously laid out, in conversa- 
tions with Mr. Markley and Major Eaton, the whole plan is opened 
up to view, in detail. 

From the three narratives, of Mr. Buchanan, Mr. Markley, and 
Major Eaton, it may fairly be gathered : 1. That Mr. Buchanan 
was intent on bringing Mr. Clay to the support of General Jackson. 
2. That he felt the importance of opening a communication with 
Mr. Clay on the subject. 3. That it was right to fight " bargain 
and intrigue" with bargain and intrigue. 4. That a negotiation 
was to be opened with Mr. Clay regarding the state department, and 
the succession. 5. That it was necessary to have an interview 
with General Jackson to consummate the plan. 6. That this in- 
terview terminated auspiciously for the object in view. 

Vol. L— 27 



440 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

In consideration of these facts, all of which clearly appear from 
the documents published to the world by these parties, no one will 
be surprised at the following occurrence : — 

Some time in January, eighteen hundred and twenty-five, 
and not long before the election of president of the United States by 
the house of representatives, the Hon. James Buchanan, then a mem- 
ber of the house, and afterward many years a senator of the United 
States, from Pennsylvania, who had been a zealous and injiuential 
supporter of General Jackson in the preceding canvass, and was 
supposed to enjoy his ujibowided confidence, called at the lodgings of 
Mr. Clay, in the city of Washington. Mr. Clay was at the time 
in the room of his only messmate in the house, his intimate and 
confidential friend, the Hon. R. P. Letcher, since governor of 
Kentucky, then also a member of the hozise. Shortly after Mr, 
Buchanan's entry into the room, he introduced the subject of the 
approaching presidential election, and spoke of the certainty of the 
election of his favorite, adding, that " he would form the most 
splendid cabinet, that the country had ever had.^^ Mr. Letcher 
asked, " How could he have one more distinguished than that of 
Mr. Jefferson, in which were both Madison and Gallatin ? Where 
would he be able to find equally eminent men ?" Mr. Buchanan 
replied, that " he would not go out of this room for a 
SECRETARY OF STATE," LOOKING AT Mr. Clay. This gen- 
tleman {Mr. Clay) playfully remarked, that " he thought there 
was no timber there fit for a cabinet officer, unless it were Mr. Bu 
chanan himself'' 

Mr. Clay, while he was so hotly assailed with the charge of bat 
gain, intrigue, and corruption, during the administration of Mr. 
Adams, notified Mr. Bucha7ia?i of his intention to publish the 
above occurrence ; but, by the earnest entreaties of that gentleman, 
he was induced to forbear doing so. 

The author has understood, that several times in later years, 
it has been intimated to Mr. Buchanan, that it might be his (Mr. 
Clay's) duty to publish these facts, and that he was dissuaded from 
it by Mr. Buchanan. 

No one will doubt the character, purport, and aim of this errand ; 
nor is it necessary to say what it proves. The long agony is 
over, and the proposal is submitted: "He [General Jackson] 

WOULD not go out OF THIS ROOM FOR A SECRETARY OF 

STATE," with his eye fixed on Mr. Clay. 

It is very probable, that when this marked and indirect overture 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 441 

was made to Mr. Clay, he did not suspect the design of Mr. 
Buchanan to tamper with him. At that time he could not have 
known of the interview between General Jackson and Mr. Bu- 
chanan, nor of the opinion and advice of Mr. Buchanan, that the 
intrigues which he imputed to the Adams party, should be met by 
intrigues in behalf of General Jackson. But connecting that over- 
ture with the agency and conduct of Mr. Buchanan in the presi- 
dential election of 1825, as now disclosed, no one can doubt the 
design of this call on Mr. Clay. 

Though Mr. Letcher, from the delicacy of his poshion in this 
matter, could never volunteer his evidence, in regard to Mr. Bu- 
chanan's errand to Mr. Clay, as above narrated, it is clear, that 
Mr. Clay had a right, at any time, in self-defence, to make a wit- 
ness of Mr. Letcher. It was a rare magnanimity to suffer injus- 
tice — and such injustice — so long, to spare the feelings of a political 
opponent, who had slender claims for such a favor, after his letter 
to the editor of the United States Telegraph, of October 16, 1827. 

It is said, that time brings all things to light. It is not equally 
true, however, that all things are brought to light in time. Had it 
been known from the beginning of this controversy, as now it must 
be known, that, so far as there was any intrigue, bargain, and cor- 
ruption, in the election of president by the house of representatives, 
in 1825, it was all and exclusively with those who brought the 
charge, how different would have been the destiny of numerous 
individuals, and how different the destiny of the country! 

There is a collateral witness to this disclosure, having respect to 
what passed between him and a collateral agent of General Jack- 
son, showing very satisfactorily that the general had authorized 
some of his friends, at an early period, to negotiate with Mr. Clay, 
which corroborates the inference so naturally deduced, that Mr. 
Buchanan was not unauthorized in the advance he made to Mr. 
Clay. It is the Hon. J. Sloane, of the Ohio delegation, in the 
house of representatives, which elected Mr. Adams to the presi- 
dency, who is one of the witnesses in jproof of a negative, before 
noticed. His evidence on this point, is as follows : — 

" WoosTER (Ohio), Jujie 20, 1844. 
"In December, 1824, about the same time that the choice of 
president by the house of representatives, was beginning to attract 
attention at Washington, I happened in company with General 
Houston [Samuel, since president of Texas], then a member of 
Congress from Tennessee, when the subject of that election was 
introduced by him. Although the subject of the presidential elec- 



U2 



THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 



tion, from the time of the commencement of the canvass before the 
people, had been fully discussed between us, this was the first 
tune, after the people had failed to elect, that we had conversed in 
relation to it. General Houston commenced by suggesting, that 
he supposed the Ohio delegation were all going to vote for Gen- 
eral Jackson. To this, I answered, that I could not undertake to 
speak for them, for, so far as I knew, no meeting or consultation 
had taken place among them. The manner of General Houston 
was anxious, and evinced much solicitude, and at this point of the 
conversation, he exclaimed : ' What a splendid administration it 
would make, with Old Hickory for president, and Mr. Clay sec- 
retary of state !' Having often before expressed to General Hous- 
ton my opinion of the several candidates, I did not, at that time, 
think proper to repeat it, contenting myself with an implied acqui- 
escence in the correctness of his declaration. 

" The conversation was continued for a considerable time, and 
for the most part, had relation to western interests, as connected 
with the presidency, and was concluded by General Houston's 
observing : ' Well, T hope you, from Ohio, will aid us in electing 
General Jackson, and then, your man — meaning Mr. Clay — can 

HAVE ANYTHING HE PLEASES.' 

" These expressions of General Houston made a strong impres- 
sion on my mind at that time, and from the relations known to 
subsist between him and General Jackson, I had not then, nor at 
any time since, a doubt, but that they embodied the feelings of that 
personage, and that it was the object of both, that Mr. Clay and 
his friends should so understand it. And I have ever thought, 
that the slanderous charge of ' bargain, corruption, and intrigue,' 
subsequently preferred by General Jackson against Mr. Clay and 
his friends, had its origin in the utter neglect, with which every 
advance made to them, by the friends of General Jackson, was 
treated. 

" In a letter written by me, dated Wooster, May 9, 1827, and 
appended to Mr. Clay's address to the public of that year, I 
referred to the importunity of some of General Jackson's friends, 
as indicative of a disposition to enter into a bargain. In that 
remark, I had in my mind, among other things, these observations 
of General Houston. Should it now be asked, why I did not then 
divulge the whole, my answer is, that, although I held myself at 
all times ready to do so, if called upon, I did not then consider 
it necessary. The only question then before the public was, the 
charge, that Mr. Clay's friends had made propositions to Jackson 
for a bargain. It was to repel that charge, that my letter, above 
mentioned, was written, and I chose to confine my statements to 
the nature of the issue. General Jackson most signally failed, 
being flatly contradicted by his only witness. 

"J. Sloane." 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 4:43 

The remarkable coincidence between General Houston's and Mr, 
Buchanan's mode of managing this business, is too strong an indica- 
tion of concert and plan, not to make an impression. And admit- 
ting such concert, and with the concert, authority for such action, 
the additional disclosure of this statement of Mr. Sloane, is not 
simply remarkable, but startling ! Admitting these two things — 
which, certainly, seem to have no slender claim for admission — every 
reasonable man will be compelled to believe, that General Jackson 
came to Washington city, at the opening of Congress, in Decem- 
ber, 1S24, with a determination to induce Mr. Clay to his sup- ji 
port, or to DESTROY him ! This advance of General Houston to 
Mr. Sloane, was made in December, " about the same time that 
the choice of president by the house of representatives, was begin- 
ning to attract attention at Washington." Of course, it was at a 
very early period of the session, and could not be later than 
Christmas, as it was then officially certified at the seat of govern- 
ment, that Mr. Clay was not returned to the house. At this early 
period, one of the most intimate and confidential friends of Gen- 
eral Jackson, himself a member of the house from Tennessee, 
approaches a member of the Ohio delegation, and in so many 
words, makes an offer of bargain, obviously designed to be carried 
to Mr. Clay ! Such was the manner of this overture, and such 
" the relations subsisting between General Houston and General 
Jackson," that Mr. Sloane says : " I had not then, nor at any 
time since, a doubt, but that they [the words] embodied the feel- 
ings of that personage [General Jackson], and that it was the ob- 
ject of BOTH, that Mr. Clay and his friends should so understand 
it /" Having been prepared for action of this kind, as early at least 
as Christmas, no one will be surprised at the zeal and system, 
with which it was prosecuted, by other agents, as proved by their 
own documents, until, some time in the course of the month 
of January, Mr. Buchanan had the boldness to approach Mr. 
Clay himself, in almost precisely the same terms, employed by 
General Houston in his address to Mr. Sloane ! The beginning, 
the middle, and the end, all agree ! 

The relative position of the conspirators in the outset 
and in the end, is worthy of notice. In the outset — as will 
have been seen, by the documents and evidence in the preceding 
pages — they acted in concert — harmoniously. They had one 
object, after they found that Mr. Clay could not be bought, viz • 



444 THE GREAT CONSPIRACF. 

to put him out of the path of General Jaclcson. They had in the 
first place acted in harmony, in the conception and offer of in- 
ducements to Mr. Clay, to support General Jackson, by inti- 
mating to him, that, in that case, he might have the office of sec- 
retary of state. This was the plan of Mr. Buchanan, as appears 
by his interviews with Major Eaton, Mr. Markley, and General 
Jackson himself, when all that these four persons state respectively, 
is collated, taking that only in which they do not come into conflict 
with each other. And it will be found by a reference to Mr. 
Markley's letter, that Mr. Buchanan's plan went further than this, 
and proposed to open Mr. Clay's path to the presidency, as the 
successor of General Jackson, on condition of his coming to the 
support of the general at this time. " He [Mr. Buchanan] hoped 
to see Mr. Clay president of the United States, and that was 
another reason why he should like to see Mr. Clay secretary of 
state, in case General Jackson were elected." But though this 
was a part of the plan of inducements, to be offered to Mr. Clay, 
it is not in evidence that Mr. Buchanan found any encouragement 
to suggest to Mr. Clay this idea of his " ulterior political pros- 
pects," as he calls them, in his conversation with Mr. Markley. 
The manner of his treatment, after he had ventured on the offer 
of the secretaryship to Mr. Clay, was too chilling to follow it up 
with the offer of the succession to the presidency. Nor does it 
appear in the documents that this "ulterior" view was discussed 
between General Jackson and Mr. Buchanan, though it might have 
been. It is not proposed here to take any ground not supported 
by the documents adduced. But Mr. Buchanan admits, that he 
mentioned the name of Mr. Clay to General Jackson, as his pros- 
pective — of course, contingent — secretary of state ; and the man- 
ner in which he mentions it, evinces that it must have been well 
considered, and the result of the interview shows, that the sugges- 
tion was at least tacitly connived at by General Jackson. I is 
sufficiently manifest, by all that has been shown, that there was no 
want of harmony in the oiitset of this plot. 

But when, on the eve of the presidential campaign of 1828, Gen- 
eral Jackson had made up his mind, to put the charge against Mr. 
Adams and Mr. Clay on a new basis, to start it under a new flag, 
himself the leader, in an open field, he and his friends immediately 
got into difficulty — got each other in — and were obliged to write 
letters to the public, to get themselves out. These documents, 
unfortunately for the parties, having been written on the principle 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 445 

of sauve qui peut — save himself who can — each one, as has been 
seen, contained shots enough to kill the authors of the others more 
than once. They were placed in new positions relative to each other 
— not designedly hostile, but necessarily so. There is no evidence, 
but that the general and Mr. Buchanan, till this period, had acted in 
concert — harmoniously ; and Mr. B. intimates, in his letter, that they 
had uninterrupted correspondence : " In all our intercourse since, 
whether personally, or in the course of our correspondence," &c. 
But Carter Beverley's awkward management at Wheeling, had 
put things out, and apparently precipitated a crisis. " It," the 
business, says Mr. Beverley, in his letter to Duff Green, of June 
25th, 1827, " has not taken the course I exactly calculated upon." 
The consequence was, that Mr. Clay, in his address to the pubHc, 
of June 29th, 1827, came down upon General Jackson, in an un- 
expected moment, which brought forth the general's missive of 
July 18th, 1827 — the most unfortunate document for history, that 
he could possibly have written, however it might have availed him 
for popular purposes at the time. As elsewhere remarked, he had 
no time to consult with Mr. Buchanan for this new exigency, and 
he literally immolated his " distinguished" friend of Pennsylvania. 
Mr. Buchanan, in self-defence, is compelled to sacrifice General 
Jackson, though he does it in the politest and most obsequious 
style ; and in the course of his vindication, he calls out his old 
friend, the Hon. P. S. Markley, in a complaint of injustice, whose 
letter, take it all in all, as before seen, is another fatal battery opened 
on Mr. Buchanan. Major Eaton also appears in the field to help the 
parties in difficulty. Mr. Buchanan might well say, " Save me 
from my friends, and I will take care of my foes." Major Eaton's 
evidence is more unfortunate for Mr. Buchanan, than all the rest, 
and leaves no door of escape. He came out ostensibly to answer 
what he regarded as a reflection of Mr. Clay on himself, and kills 
a friend in an endeavor to serve him ! 

All these documents were published by men in difficulty, to get 
out, and it would be hard to show, whether they were more instru- 
ments of fratricide than of suicide. In both these functions they 
have been most murderous. General Jackson kills Mr. Buchanan ; 
Mr. Buchanan kills General Jackson ; and Major Eaton, in trying 
to save Mr. Buchanan, kills him over again ! The major, too, 
had been badly maimed, in an encounter with Mr. Clay, before he 
came to the help of his friend. Having called Mr. Clay to account 
for intimating that he (Major Eaton), wrote or dictated Mr. Kre- 



4:46 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

mer's " card," Mr. Clay replied, that he would be most happy to 
do him the justice of publicly correcting the error, if he (Major 
Eaton) would say it was an error. The major's conscience or 
fears stopped him there. 

While, therefore, these gentlemen were sufficiently harmonious 
in counsel, for a common end, each seems to have been for him- 
self, in a change of relative position — in a strait. 

One of the latest attempts to support the charge of " bargain" 
against Mr. Clay, for political effect, was by the Hon. Lynn Boyd, 
of Kentucky, on the floor of the house of Representatives, in Con- 
gress, April 30th, 1844. It grew out of General Jackson's card 
of May 3, 1844, re-affirming the charge, though there were several 
steps between the one event and the other. Mr. Boyd had 
published a letter in the Richmond Enquirer, which occasioned 
some strictures by the Hon. John White, in Congress, April 23, 
and on the 30th, Mr. Boyd replied, and went over the whole ground 
of the " bargain." He did the best he could, after the subject 
had been for many years exhausted ; and the strongest point he 
made, which he seemed much to rely upon, is what he calls ^'- con- 
trolling the event.'''' Mr. Clay's friends at Washington published 
an address, in May, 1824, in which they said, " If, contrary to all 
probability, Mr. Clay should not be returned to the house, his 
friends, having done their duty, will be able, by concentration, to 
control the event.^^ This appeared to be the pivot of the argument. 
But this was published to the world. The absurdity of proving a 
secret bargain, on a jiublic address, would seem to indicate great 
poverty. It is well known, that such language is always used by 
the stronger party : " We can control the event." Do they not 
always know and say it, when they go into Congress, or any other 
field of action, with a majority ? 

Mr. Boyd was decidedly unfair and ungenerous, in citing Gov. 
Metcalf 's remark, in this argument, which was made to the Hon. 
R. M. Johnson, late vice-president, in a private conversation, to 
wit, " Perhaps we have done too much for our friend" (Mr. Clay), 
as if it were a confession of bargain, when Mr. Boyd could hardly 
have been ignorant of the existence of a certificate relating to this 
very remark, from under Mr. Johnson's own hand of which the 
following is an extract : — 

•' I did not consider, in any of his [Gov. Metcalf 's] remarks, 
that he alluded to any bargain ; nor did I understand that he had 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 447 

reference to any previous understanding on the subject of the pres 
idential election. 

" April Uh, 1828." " ^^' ^- Johnson. 

Mr. Boyd, after all, makes a confession, which is all that is re- 
quired : " Although impartial men may believe, as I do myself, 
that there vi^as no technical bargain entered into between Mr. Ad- 
ams and Mr. Clay, in their own proper persons, yet it does seem 
to me, that no one free from prejudice, can carefully examine the 
circumstances and evidences in the case, without the most thorough 
conviction, that it was understood by the parties, that Mr. Clay's 
appointment to the office of secretary of state would result from 
the election of Mr. Adams." 

Without conceding all that Mr. Boyd here claims — though there 
is no harm even in that — he, certainly, has conceded enough. He 
admits, that '■^ impartial men,'' ^ and himself — of course claiming 
to be one — do not believe there was any " technical bargain" — by 
which he doubtless means a criminal understanding — " between 
Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay." He claims, indeed, that it was un- 
derstood, that Mr. Clay would be secretary of state. Is it not 
always understood, among partisans, in such cases, who will occupy 
this or that place? General Hamilton, a Jackson man, says in his 
letter on another page, it was " inevitable," that Mr. Clay should 
be secretary of state, and justifies him throughout. Some Jack- 
son men, as is proved, insisted upon it. 

It is very certain, after this effort of Mr. Boyd, in 1844, who 
had the whole field before him, who is a very able man, and who 
wished to justify General Jackson's card of the same year, by 
proving all he could, that the argument is pretty well exhausted , 
and the end of it, by his own confession, is an acquittal of 
Mr. Clay ! ! 

The crime and consequences of this plot, claim a mo- 
ment's notice. That it has profoundly affected the destiny of the 
parties, and of the country, no one can doubt. The first an- 
nouncement of the charge, was a shock to the whole American 
mind, as well it might be. To that hour, Mr. Clay's reputation 
had been pure, unsullied. His public services, great and unri- 
valled, were acknowledged and appreciated. High — and as re- 
spects a well-earned influence, the highest — in the councils of 
the nation, his private virtues and his undoubted patriotism were 

I not less esteemed. With a reputation at home untarnished his 

i 



448 THE GREAT CONSPIRACY. 

fame as an advocate of human rights and of poUtical freedom, and as 
a statesman, had gone widely abroad, sounded over every continent, 
and penetrated to the centres of vast spheres of despotism, to shake 
the thrones of tyrants, and to give hope to the oppressed. It was 
against a statesman, occupying such a position in the social state 
of mankind, and enjoying such a reputation, earned by a life of 
virtuous toil, that the charge of bargaining for an office, which 
could not elevate him — which was a condescension for him to 
accept — was concocted and sent forth upon the world ! Well, in- 
deed, might the nation be astounded ! But the author of this cal- 
umny — the first to conceive and the last to maintain it — not only 
claimed to be a rival, but was the head of a party ; and it was, 
therefore, a moral certainty, however false, and infamous, and crim- 
inal, the accusation might be, that it would at once be received, 
and entertained by his adherents, as a household word, an article 
of creed. Under these circumstances, and by means of such an 
auxiliary, it shot forth from the furnace of its fabrication, to obtain 
an instantaneous lodgment in a large portion of the public mind, 
from which, thenceforth, it was impossible to dislodge it. It was, 
indeed, an audacious movement ; and its very audacity served to 
give it credence. After the first shock, every inquiring mind nat- 
urally asked : " Would responsible men originate and circulate 
such a story, against such a man, without foundation ?" Investiga- 
tion being thwarted by such means as have been noticed, as a pari 
of the plot, it was impossible to settle the general mind. The 
public neither saw, much less understood, the arts of such a con- 
spiration. There was the charge, and there the endorsers — the 
latter, indeed, not visible at first, but well understood. It was 
hard to shake the public faith in Henry Clay ; but these men were 
worthy of some respect. The charge was kept afloat, without per- 
mitting investigation ; it was cherished by thousands, by tens of 
thousands, as a thing most welcome ; it was not allowed to sleep, 
either in time, or space ; and at last, by constant agitation, under 
such circumstances, became an uncertainty ! By such means, 
the public faith in Mr. Clay was first shaken, then permanently 
impaired. Then who — what power — could reestablish it? 

The same has been the effect on the destiny of the country, 
whether for good, or for evil. If Mr. Clay's patriotism was true 
the pretensions of the conspirators were false ; if his principles 
were sound, theirs were unsound ; if his policy was conserva 
tive of, and calculated to promote, the best interests of the 



ITS DEVELOPMENT. 449 

country, theirs was destructive ; and hence the public conflicts, 
and the pubHc calamities, that have befallen the country, since this 
conspiracy began to triumph. It hardly need be said, that it has 
been an uninterrupted scene of domestic strife and public disaster. 
But the most fearful lesson inculcated, in the results of this 
plot, is, that crime, in a republic, may triumph over virtue, and be 
rewarded. That the judgment of mankind, and of history, in 
regard to these transactions, will be right, there is no room for 
doubt ; it is even possible, that the present generation of the peo- 
ple of the United States, should see the injustice they have done 
to one of the greatest and purest men, that was ever born on 
American soil ; nevertheless, this experience of the past is dis- 
heartening to the aspirations of patriotism, and throws a gloom 
over the hopes of good men. It has been proved that the purest 
reputation of a patriot and statesman, who may have gained his 
eminence by a life of constant self-sacrifice to his country, may be 
blasted in one hour, by the breath of calumny ! In history, he 
may indeed rely on his verdict of acquittal. But what hving man 
covets such an ordeal, for the sake of such a justification ? Who 
ever considered himself better off, for having been on trial for a 
criminal offence, though he were vindicated at last, and the wrong- 
doer punished ? All he has to console himself with, in the end, 
is that Justice, as between him and his persecutors, has pronounced 
her decision. But who will restore to him what he has lost by 
injustice ? In this light, the resuhs of this plot are inauspicious, 
not only for the encouragement of political virtue, not only for the 
welfare of the country, but for the liberties of the republic ! If 
success in politics, by whatever means, is to pass for justification, 
and might, so acquired, for right, the nation that adopts the prin- 
ciple, is doomed to perdition ! 

But for this diabolical plot, no man could have commanded more 
of the respect, confidence, and affection of the American people, 
than Henry Clay. But for this " electioneering staple," Mr. Ad- 
ams would have been re-elected in 1828, and Mr. Clay would 
have been president in 1833. The effect of this, doubtless, pre- 
vented his being the candidate, and being elected, in 1840. But 
for this, who could have stood before him in 1844 ? But for this, 
Andrew Jackson — justly lauded for his military services — would 
have died, unknown as a statesman. And but for this, who can 
doubt, that the destiny of the country would have been glorious 

AND HAPPY ? 



450 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS 



CHAPTER XIX. 

The American System. — Mr. Clay's Internal Improvement Policy. 

The measures of public policy chiefly embraced in the Ameri- 
can System — appropriately so called, as will appear — are internal 
improvements and the protective policy. There are, undoubted- 
ly, various ramifications of these two great doctrines. There are 
collateral measures, and measures of affinity, having more or less 
of an intimate connexion. There are numerous measures of re- 
sult, emanating from this system. But internal improvement, and 
protection of American interests, labor, industry, and arts, are 
commonly understood to be the leading measures, which consti- 
tute the American System. 

The validity and importance of internal improvements, are sug- 
gested and established by four prime considerations : First, the 
physical rudeness of the face of the country, and the imperfect 
water-channels — a lake being a channel, as well as a river — inter- 
posing obstacles to social communication and commercial opera- 
tions ; next, and as a consequence, the removal of these obstacles, 
to facilitate intercourse, and the internal trade of the country ; third, 
as a social and political bond of the Union ; and last, as a system 
of national economy in preparation for war, and for the advantages 
to be derived therefrom in a time of war. 

In the physical structure and condition of the country, there was 
a natural barrier and separation between the Atlantic states and 
the valley of the Mississippi, constituted by the Allegany ridge 
and the extensive, crude regions, comprehended in its eastern and 
western declivities. It was a barrier in itself sufficient to mark out 
and decree an eastern and western empire. The slow and painful 
progress, and the calamitous defeat, of Braddock and his army, 
in the French war, marching to Fort Pitt, are a striking exempli- 
fication of the formidable character of that great natural obstacle. 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 451 

The long, expensive, and hazardous journeys of the early emi- 
grants from east to west, are another example. Rude, mountain- 
ous, and savage regions, without roads, and of vast extent, and 
thousand-mile rivers, with scarcely a civilized tenant on their 
banks, whose rapids and shoals were unknown, and wanting navi- 
gable craft, intervened between the start of emigrants, with the cry 
of " Westward, ho !" in their mouths, and the place of their des- 
tination. The public law of nations, and the royal charters, under 
the auspices of which the American shores of the Atlantic were 
peopled from the continent of Europe, had secured to those pil- 
grim settlers, in the north and south, a western jurisdiction unlim- 
ited, except by the waters which lave the shores of the Pacific and 
" the great south sea," so called, in the ignorance of those times, 
but not now in use. But of what avail was jurisdiction, while such 
insurmountable obstacles lay in the pathway to assert and maintain 
it? In the progress of time, floods of population were rolling 
westward, and it was easy to see, that a balance-power would soon 
start up in those regions, to divide empire with the east, unless 
some permanent and indissoluble bond could be formed, to reduce 
and subdue the rough barrier between them, and cement the two 
sections by moral, social, and political ties. 

Fortunately for the destinies of the country, a future statesman, 
fitted by nature and circumstance for this great exigency, had gone 
over this barrier, and planted himself in the heart of that vale of 
the west, to grow up in the midst of that population, to have all 
his fortunes cast with them, to rise in their esteem and confidence, 
and at an early period to represent them in the capitol of the re- 
public. Still more fortunately, he was disposed to cherish and 
cultivate those enlarged and liberal views, which, loving a part, 
embraced the whole with the same affection, and while he evinced 
a care for the west, he was not less careful for the east, and the 
north, and the south. Fortunately yet further, in passing from the 
west to the east, and from the east to the west, in the discharge of 
his public duties, those long and painful journeys, and the physi- 
cal inconvenience and suffering which unavoidably attended them, 
were probably among the most powerful incentives to his genius 
in the conception of that system of internal improvements, which 
he afterward propounded so lucidly, advocated so eloquently and 
BO successfully, and for the advancement of which, among other 
great national objects, he has devoted a long life, consecrated his 
great abilities, and evinced to the last an untiring, unabated zeal, 



452 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

Not all has been done that he wished. He has been opposed. But 
much has been achieved. The spirit of internal improvement 
•which he excited in the country, could not be quenched. Though 
arbitrary and despotic executive vetoes have intervened ; though 
affected " constitutional scruples" have planted themselves in the 
pathway of this great and beneficent national policy ; it has all 
proved only a diversion of the momentum given to the cause, to 
appear and act efficiently in other forms, by other agencies, of 
states, corporations, and individual enterprise. One great branch 
of this policy, started by the federal government, always advo- 
cated by Mr. Clay, could not be arrested, is still in progress, and 
will probably go on to consummation : The Alleganies have been 
levelled to a plain by the great national, commonly called the 
Cumberland road, and may be surmounted with all the ease and 
safety, which characterize travel on the Macadamized roads in the 
vicinity of cities and large towns, in America and in Europe. This 
road alone has been, and will remain, not less effective as a pow- 
erful bond of the Union, than as a facility for travel, and for trans- 
portation of merchandise. 

Stimulated by this spirit of internal improvement, which was 
kindled in the land by the fires of one genius, two other great 
openings between the east and the west have been effected by the 
states of New York and Pennsylvania, in the creation of gigantic 
artificial channels, connecting the rivers and harbors of the At- 
lantic border, with the lakes which disembogue by the St. Law- 
rence, and the rivers which descend into the Mexican gulf. For 
the bulk of travel and transportation, these have hitherto, since 
their completion, taken the lead of all other channels of communi- 
cation between the east and west, which are thus brought together, 
and planted at the doors of each other. But new and independent 
projects, and various ramifications of older ones, by canals and 
railroads, are continually multiplying, and vying with each other, 
in the facilities they afford to the internal travel and trade of the 
country, and in the activity and celerity of their modes and means 
of conveyance and transportation. The Chesapeake and Ohio 
canal, from Alexandria to Cumberland, is a magnificent work ; 
and the extension of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, to the Ohio 
river, would seem to place the communications, between the east 
and west, in a northern and southern latitude, as near perfection as 
can well be conceived. The physical obstacles of distance, of 
mountain barriers, of vast and trackless wilds, and of unsurveyed 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 453 

waters, have vanished, and the passenger, who formerly required 
months, with great pains and risks, to reach a given destination, 
from a given point, east or west, now smoothly ghdes along to the 
end of his journey in so many days, sleeping or reading, with the 
speed of winds and of the flight of birds, and may order his goods 
and chattels, his merchandise or produce, to go before, or come 
after him, without his care, and be sure to find them where and 
when he wants them. Such is the enchantment of the revolution 
which art and enterprise have achieved over nature. By the space- 
annihilating power of internal improvement, Boston and St. Louis, 
New York and New Orleans, are now brought as near together, 
across the AUeganies, as were Boston and the city of Baltimore 
fifty years ago. The remotest parts of the Union have been made 
neighbors of each other, and the social and polhical bonds have 
been strengthened in proportion as these obstacles to intercourse 
and trade have been removed. The mind that conceived this stu- 
pendous scheme, can be estimated only by the history of its progress, 
and the results of its execution. That there have been co-workers, 
is true ; but the leader, the pioneer, the eloquent mover of the 
general mind, is seen and recognised by all. The perfect form 
and matchless beauty of the most admired statue, was in the mind 
of the artist, when the rude block of marble was a component part 
of the mountain quarry, and when it was brought and laid at the 
artist's feet. But it was his chisel that carefully knocked off the 
chips which first began to develop the forms of his model ; it was 
his skill and workmanship which at last brought forth and presented 
to an admiring world the permanent, imperishable fruit of his ge- 
nius. It stands, it speaks, and will eloquently entertain generation 
after generation, commemorating the name of its author, while his- 
tory and art abide to instruct mankind. 

The early plan of internal improvement, advocated by Mr. Clay, 
has undergone various modifications, from the influence of two 
causes — opposition and the improved modes of works of this de- 
sign. Contemporaneously with the erection of the great national 
road, from east to west, it was also designed, that a national road 
should be built parallel with the Atlantic coast, from the northeast- 
ern to the southern boundary of the Union. The failure of this 
part of the plan — magnificent and seductive as it was for the time 
being — is not so much to be regretted, since the more recent in- 
vention of railroads has at least in part, if not entirely, super- 



454 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

seded its necessity, and would in a great degree have supplanted 
its use. 

After Mr. Clay's plan of internal improvement was brought for- 
ward, and began to invoke the attention and aid of the general gov- 
ernment — whether from jealousy or other cause, it is not perhaps 
material to decide — a constitutional question was raised, and made 
to embarrass the minds, successively, of Presidents Madison, Mon- 
roe, and Jackson, whose sanction, as chief executive officers for 
the time being, was indispensable to give effect to the policy. The 
fourteenth Congress, the last under Mr. Madison, had renewed 
the charter of the United States bank — more properly, perhaps, 
granted a new one, as the old bank was defunct — and a bill was 
brought into that Congress, and passed, to set apart and pledge, 
as a fund for internal improvement, the bonus required of the bank, 
and the United States' share of the dividends on the national stock. 
The republican, or democratic party, who were chiefly influential 
in the recharter of the bank — a measure which had been rejected 
by them in 1811, but was now earnestly advocated, after the sad 
experience of a deranged currency for four years — were also ear- 
nest advocates of this internal improvement bill. Mr. Calhoun of 
the south, Mr. Clay of the west, Mr. Gold of the north, Mr. Sheffey 
of Virginia, and other republicans, stood, side by side, in vindica- 
tion of the constitutionality, and in advocacy of the expediency, of 
this measure. Very unexpectedly, however, Mr. Madison sent in 
his objections to this bill, the day before he retired from office, 
March 3, 1817 ; and Mr. Monroe came out, in his first message 
to Congress, coinciding, on this point, with Mr. Madison's veto. 
It is due to both of them, however, to say, that they were the ad- 
vocates of internal improvement, and recommended an amendment 
of the constitution with that view. Nevertheless, Mr. Madison, 
by his veto, had dashed the cup from the lips to the ground, as he 
went out of office ; and Mr. Monroe coming in, at least for four 
years, probably for eight — it proved to be eight — broke the cup 
in advance, so that it could not be used during his term of office, 
without an amendment of the constitution. 

On the 4th of February, 1817, while this bill was pending, Mr. 
Clay made the following remarks, in committee of the whole 
house : — 

" As to the constitutional point which had been made, he had 
not a doubt on his mind ; but it was not necessary, in his judg- 
ment, to embarrass the passage of the bill with the argument of 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 455 

that point at this time. It was a sufficient answer to say, that the 
power was not now to be exercised. It was proposed merely to 
designate the fund, and, from time to time, as the proceeds of it 
came in, to invest them in the funded debt of the United States. 
It would thus be accumulating ; and Congress could, at some 
future day, examine into the constitutionality of the question, and 
if it has the power, it would exercise it ; if it has not, the consti- 
tution, there could be very little doubt, would be so amended as 
to confer it. It was quite obvious, however, that Congress might 
so direct the application of the fund, as not to interfere with the 
jurisdiction of the several states, and thus avoid the difficulty 
which had been started. It might distribute it among those objects 
of private enterprise which called for national patronage in the 
form of subscriptions to the capital stock of incorporated compa- 
nies, such as that of the Delaware and Chesapeake canal, and 
other similar institutions. Perhaps that might be the best way to 
employ the fund ; but, he repeated, this was not the time to go 
into this inquiry. 

" With regard to the general importance of the proposition — the 
effect of internal improvements in cementing the Union, in facili- 
tating internal trade, in augmenting the wealth and the population 
of the country, he would not consume the time of the committee 
in discussing those interesting topics, after the able manner in 
which they had been treated by his friend from South Carolina 
[Mr. Calhoun]. In reply to those who thought that internal im- 
provements had better be left to the several states, he would ask — 
he would put it to the candor of every one — if there were not 
various objects in which many states were interested, and which, 
requiring therefore their joint cooperation, would, if not taken up 
by the general government, be neglected, either for the want of 
resources, or from the difficulty of regulating their respective con- 
tributions ? 

" Mr. Clay owned that he felt anxiously desirous for the success 
of this measure. He was anxious, from its intrinsic merits — from 
his sincere conviction of its tendency greatly to promote the welfare 
of our common country. He was anxious from other, perhaps 
more selfish considerations. He wished the fourteenth Congress 
to have the merit of laying the foundations of this great work. He 
wished this Congress, which, in his opinion, had so many other just 
grounds for the national approbation, notwithstanding the obloquy 
which had attended a single unfortunate measure, to add this new 
claim to the public gratitude." 

This bill passed, and as before recognised, was vetoed by Mr. 
Madison. It will be observed, that Mr. Calhoun was an earneatt 
advocate of this measure, as he had been of the bank of 1S16. 1 

Vol. I.— 28 



456 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

is remarkable, that, during the repubhcan or democratic era, or foi 
the most of it, Mr. Clay and Mr. Calhoun should have been coad- 
jutors, advocates of the same principles, of the same measures, and 
working shoulder to shoulder in a common cause, for a common 
country ; and that afterward, when the character of the government 
had so essentially changed, and the federal executive began to as- 
sert regal pretensions, and exercise regal powers, these two states- 
men should have been so far asunder ! Who had changed ? It 
does not appear that Mr. Clay ever changed his opinion on a great 
national question, except in the case of the United States bank, and 
when he took up his ground on that in 1816, Mr. Calhoun was 
with him. In alluding to this change, Mr. Clay, in his speech at 
Lexington, June 9, 1842, said: "I do not advert to the fact of 
this solitary instance of change of opinion, as implying any personal 
merit, but because it is a fact. I will, however, say, that I think 
it is very perilous to the usefulness of any public man to make fre- 
quent changes of opinion. * * * It draws around him distrust, 
impairs the public confidence, and lessens his capacity to serve his 
country." 

Three presidents successively, Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Madison, and 
Mr. Monroe, had officially expressed their opinion adverse to a 
power vested in Congress by the constitution for projects of inter- 
nal improvement, as contemplated by the measures proposed. 
Not satisfied with these decisions, Mr. Clay and his friends were 
instrumental in having a resolution brought forward, in the fifteenth 
Congress, declaring that Congress had power, under the constitu- 
tion, to make appropriations for the construction of military roads, 
post-roads, and canals ; and the following extract is from his 
speech of March 13, 1818, in favor of this resolution: — 

" When I feel what a deep interest the Union at large, and par- 
ticularly that quarter of it whence I come, has, in the decision of 
he present question, I can not omit any opportunity of earnestly 
irging upon the house the propriety of retaining the important 
power which this question involves. It will be recollected, that 
if unfortunately there should be a majority both against the ab- 
stract proposition asserting the power, and against its practical 
execution, the power is gone for ever — the question is put at rest, 
ao long as the constitution remains as it is ; and with respect to 
any amendment, in this particular, I confess I utterly despair. It 
will bo borne in mind, that the bill which passed Congress on this 
subject, at the last session, was rejected by the late president of 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 457 

the United States ; that at the commencement of the present ses- 
sion, the president communicated his clear opinion, after every 
effort to come to a different conclusion, that Congress does not 
possess the power contended for, and called upon us to take up 
the subject, in the shape of an amendment to the constitution , 
and, moreover, that the predecessor of the present and late presi- 
dents, also intimated his opinion, that Congress does not pos- 
sess the power. With the great weight and authority of the opin- 
ions of these distinguished men against the power, and with the 
fact, solemnly entered upon the record, that this house, after a 
deliberate review of the ground taken by it at the last session, has 
decided against the existence of it (if such, fatally, shall be the 
decision), the power, I repeat, is gone — gone for ever, unless 
restored by an amendment of the constitution. With regard to 
the practicability of obtaining such an amendment, I think it alto- 
gether out of the question. Two different descriptions of persons, 
entertaining sentiments directly opposed, will unite and defeat such 
an amendment : one embracing those who believe that the consti- 
tion, fairly interpreted, already conveys the power ; and the other, 
those who think that Congress has not and ought not to have it. 
As a large portion of Congress, and probably a majority, believes 
the power to exist, it must be evident, if I am right in supposing 
that any considerable number of that majority would vote against 
an amendment which they do not believe necessary, that any 
attempt to amend would fail. Considering, as I do, the existence 
of the power as of the first importance, not merely to the preserva- 
tion of the union of the states, paramount as that consideration 
ever should be over all others, but to the prosperity of every great 
interest of the country, agriculture, manufactures, commerce, in 
peace and in war, it becomes us solemnly, and deliberately, and 
anxiously, to examine the constitution, and not to surrender it, if 
fairly to be collected from a just interpretation of that instrument." 

There was a time, in the history of the country, when proposals 
to amend the constitution were thought easy of attainment — at least 
not very difficult. It was for a long time a custom with the presi- 
dent, in his official communications to Congress, to speak on the 
subject, and sometimes to recommend it for specific objects, as 
though it ought to be entertained, and might be accomplished 
Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, were of this number — the last 
two recommended it for the object of internal improvement, after 
having expressed their opinion adverse to the constitutional power. 
In 1817, Mr. Clay once expressed himself as if this might be hoped 
for, in this difference of opinion. But at this lime, 1818. he 
seemed to have come to the conclusion, that an amendment of the 
constitution was impracticable, and gives his reasons for ^t, as 



458 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

above. It was, therefore, a subject of profound concern with him, 
to find the national executive, at the opening of his administration, 
which might and would probably be extended to eight years, iu 
this position, inasmuch as no objects of internal improvement, how- 
ever important and desirable, could be consummated without his 
official sanction. This, as is well known, was a favorite policy 
with Mr. Clay — one that he had long cherished, and conscientiously 
believed to lie within the pale of the constitution. He saw that it 
was vital to the Union, for its conservation and stability ; to com 
mercial intercourse within the circle of the Union, and not less to 
foreign trade ; to the social and political welfare of the republic. 
The policy comprehended not only all the veins and arteries of the 
body, as one, but those members and faculties which connected it 
with foreign bodies. All the outlets of the Union to the highway 
of nations, and all passages to foreign jurisdictions over a many- 
thousand-mile line of inland border, came within the scope of this 
policy. The lakes, the Mississippi and its tributaries, the Atlantic 
rivers, bays, inlets, and harbors, with all their countless imperfec- 
tions and obstructions, and with all their capabilities of improve- 
ment, invoked the wisdom and patriotism of every American states- 
man, to come to their aid for " the general welfare." Nature's 
mighty barrier between the east and west, was yet unsubdued — 
scarcely an impression was made upon it. The whole country, as 
compared with what might be, was, by this means, literally bound 
in chains, and implored relief, relaxation, freedom. Its vital cur- 
rents could not circulate as they ought ; its limbs had no ample 
fscope for action ; its capacities were cramped ; and its very intelli- 
gence was limited and compressed. 

But Mr. Madison had delivered his opinion, destroyed the 
measure which he had recommended, and retired. Mr. Monroe 
had also pronounced his decision in advance ; and it now seemed 
a settled question, that the difficulty could not be got over by an 
amendment of the constitution. What was to be done ? "I re- 
peat," said Mr. Clay, " the power is gone — gone for ever," if the 
resolution before the house should fail — a resolution declaratory of 
the existence of the constitutional power for internal improvements. 

In reference to the Virginia resolutions of 1798, of which Mr. 
Madison was the author, Mr. Clay said : — 

" It will be remarked, that Mr. Madison, in his reasoning on the 
constitution, has not employed the language fashionable during 
this debate ; he has not said, that an implied power must be ahio- 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 4-59 

lutely necessary to carry into effect the specified power, to which it 
is appurtenant, to enable the general government to exercise it. 
No! This is a modern interpretation of the constitution. Mr. 
Madison has employed the language of the instrument itself, and 
has only contended that the implied power must be necessary and 
proper to carry into effect the specified power. He has only 
insisted, that when Congress applied its sound judgment to the 
constitution in relation to implied powers, it should be clearly seen 
that they were necessary and proper to effectuate the specified 
powers. These are my principles ; but they are not those of the 
gentleman from Virginia and his friends on this occasion. They 
contend for a degree of necessity absolute and indispensable ; that 
by no possibility can the power be otherwise executed. 

" That there are two classes of powers in the constitution, 1 
believe has never been controverted by an American statesman. 
We can not foresee and provide specifically for all contingences. 
Man and his language are both imperfect. Hence the existence 
of construction, and of constructive powers. Hence also the rule, 
that a grant of the end is a grant of the means. If you amend 
the constitution a thousand times, the same imperfection of our 
nature and our language will attend our new works. There are 
two dangers to which we are exposed. The one is, that the gen- 
eral government may relapse into the debility which existed in the 
old confederation, and finally dissolve from the want of cohesion. 
The denial to it of powers plainly conferred, or clearly necessary and 
proper to execute the conferred powers, may produce this effect. 
And I think, with great deference to the gentlemen on the other 
side, this is the danger to which their principles directly tend. The 
other danger, that of consolidation, is, by the assumption of powers 
not granted, nor incident to granted powers, or the assumption of 
powers which have been withheld, or expressly prohibited. This 
was the danger of the period of 179S— '9. For instance, that, in 
direct contradiction to a prohibitory clause of the constitution, a 
sedition act was passed ; and an alien law was also passed, in equal 
violation of the spirit, if not of the express provisions, of the con- 
stitution. It was by such measures that the federal party (if par- 
ties may be named), throwing off the veil, furnished to their ad- 
versaries the most effectual ground of opposition. If they had 
not passed those acts, I think it highly probable that the current of 
power would have continued to flow in the same channel ; and the 
change of parties in 1801, so auspicious to the best interests of 
the country, as I believe, would never have occurred. 
" I beg the committee — I entreat the true friends of the confeder 
ated union of these states — to examine this doctrine of state rights, 
and see to what abusive, if not dangerous consequences, it may 
lead, to what extent it has been carried, and how it has varied in 
the same state at different times.*' 



480 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS'. 

'* The gentleman from Virginia," to whom Mr. Clay was more 
especially responding in the foregoing remarks, was Mr. Nelson, 
who had professedly taken refuge under the resolutions of '98, and 
arraigned Mr. Clay's orthodoxy. Mr. Clay avowed adherence to the 
same creed, and attempted to prove — apparently succeeded — that 
he was a true disciple. He was, perhaps, more properly a master. 

It is remarkable, that it should prove so difficult to tind, or rather 
to agree on, the line of demarcation between federal and state rights, 
defined so precisely as they are by the constitution : " The powers 
not delegated to the United States by the constitution, nor prohib- 
ited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to 
the people." Among the several legislative powers conferred on 
Congress, is, first, the general '* power to lay and collect taxes, 
duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the 
common defence and general welfare of the United States." After 
enumerating about thirty specific grants of power, the whole is 
covered by the following discretionary power : " And to make all 
laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execu- 
tion ihe foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this con- 
stitution in the government of the United States, or in any depart- 
ment or officer thereof." Among the specific grants is one " to 
establish postoffices and postroads," which, besides the power 
" to provide for the common defence and general welfare" — about 
which some question has arisen, whether it is intended for more 
than an announcement of the specific grants — is claimed to involve 
the principle of internal improvements, and to authorize at least 
one form. And the concluding general and discretionary power, 
which covers all the rest, " to make all laws which shall be neces- 
sary and proper," &c., may extend the application of this principle 
of " postroads," as far as Congress may think " necessary and 
proper" " for the general welfare," to roads of any description, on 
land or water. 

The great question apparently is, whether the people, in their 
representative capacity in Congress, shall avail themselves of the 
design and benefits of the constitution ; or whether, by yielding to 
the claims of some of the states, they shall sacrifice those benefits, 
surrender the great objects of the constitution, and fall back into 
all the evils to which the country was subjected under the old ar- 
ticles of confederation. It will not be denied, that the constitution 
was formed for the express purpose of conferring higher and more 
comprehensive powers on the general government, and that "post- 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 461 

roads" was one of the additional and specific grants. To say, that 
the use of these powers is a usurpation of state-rights, and an aim 
at consolidation, is to bring the charge, not only on the framers 
of the constitution, but on the necessity and distress of the country 
which led to the formation of that instrument, and the establish- 
ment of the government which it authorized and required. 

The phrases, " all laws necessary and proper," and " all other 
powers," were construed in this debate, by some, as requiring a 
case of absolute necessity, to authorize the use of these powers, 
instead of justifying the use of a reasonable discretion. But it is 
evident, that as much difficulty would arise in determining what 
is ahsoluttly necessary, as what is necessary, and that the latter 
form of expression may be as strong as the former — must be as 
strong, if applied to a case of necessity. What can add to the force 
of a necessity? Discretion, judgment, is put in requisition, in 
either case ; and the latter is the language of the constitution. Mr. 
Madison stopped there, and Mr. Clay went no further. 

After showing that necessity and absolute necessity amounted to 
the same thing, Mr. Clay said : — 

"If, then, the gentlemen on the other side and myself differ so 
little in our general principles, as I think I have shown, I will pro- 
ceed, for a few moments, to look at the constitution a little more in 
detail. I have contended, that the power to coyistruct post-roads 
is expressly granted in the power to establish post-roads. If it be, 
there is an end of the controversy ; but if not, the next inquiry is, 
whether that power may be fairly deduced, by implication, from 
any of the special grants of power. To show that the power is 
expressly granted, I might safely appeal to the arguments already 
used, to prove that the word establish, in this case, can mean only 
one thing — the right of making. Several gentlemen have con- 
tended, that the word has a different sense ; and one has resorted to 
the preamble of the constitution, to show that the phrase 'to es- 
tablish justice,' there used, does not convey the power of creation. 
If the word ' establish' is there to be taken in the sense which gen- 
tlemen claim for it, that of adoption or designation, Congress could 
have a choice only of systems of justice preexisting. Will any 
gentleman contend, that we are obliged to take the Justinian code, 
the Napoleon code, the code of civil, or the code of common or 
canon law? Establishment means in the preamble, as in other 
cases, construction, formation, creation. Let me ask, in all cases 
of crime, which are merely malum prohibitum, if you do not re- 
sort to construction, to creating, when you make the offence? By 
your laws denouncing certain acts as criminal offences, laws which 
the good of society requires you to pass, and to adapt to our pe- 



462 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

cullar condition, you do construct and create a system of rules, to 
be administered by tbe. judiciary. But gentlemen say, that the 
word can not mean make; that you would not say, for example, to 
establish a ship, to establish a chair. In the application of this, as 
of all other terms, you must be guided by the nature of the sub- 
ject; and if it can not properly be used in all cases, it does not 
follow that it can not be in any. And when we take into consid- 
eration that, under the old articles of confederation, Congress had 
over the subject of post-roads just as much power as gentlemen 
allow to the existing government, that it was the general scope and 
spirit of the new constitution to enlarge the powers of the general 
government, and that, in fact, in this very clause, the power to es- 
tablish postofBces, which was alone possessed by the former gov- 
ernment, I think that I may safely consider the argument, on this 
part of the subject, as successfully maintained. With respect to 
military roads, the concession that they may be made when called 
for by the emergency, is admitting that the constitution conveys 
the power. And we may safely appeal to the judgment of the 
candid and enlightened, to decide between the wisdom of these 
two constructions, of which one requires you to wait for the exer- 
cise of your power until the arrival of an emergency, which may 
not allow you to exert it, and the other, without denying you the 
power, if you can exercise it during the emergency, claims the 
right of providing beforehand against the emergency. 

" Is there not a direct and intimate relation between the power 
to make war, and military roads and canals ? It is in vain that the 
convention have confided to the general government the tremen- 
dous power of declaring war — have imposed upon it the duty to 
employ the whole physical means of the nation to render the war, 
whatever may be its character, successful and glorious — if the 
power is withheld of transporting and distributing those means. 
Let us appeal to facts, which are sometimes worth volumes of the- 
ory. We have recently had a war raging on all the four quarters 
of the Union. The only circumstance which gave me pain at the 
close of that war, the detention of Moose island, would not have 
occurred, if we had possessed military roads. Why did not the 
Union, why did not Massachusetts, make a struggle to re-conquer 
the island V Not for the want of men ; not for the want of patriot- 
ism, I hope ; but from the want of physical ability to march a 
force sufficient to dislodge the enemy. On the northwestern fron- 
tier, millions of money, and some of the most precious blood of 
the state from which I have the honor to come, was wastefully ex- 
pended for the want of such roads. My honorable friend from 
Ohio [General Harrison], who commanded the army in that quar- 
ter, could furnish a volume of evidence on this subject. What 
now paralyzes our arms on the southern frontier, and occasioned 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 463 

the recent massacre of fifty of our brave soldiers ? What, but 
the want of proper means for the communication of intelligence, 
and for the transportation of our resources from point to point ? 
Whether we refer to our own experience, or that of other coun- 
tries, we can not fail to perceive the great value of military roads. 
Those great masters of the world, the Romans, how did they sus- 
tain their power so many centuries, diffusing law and liberty, and 
intelligence, all around them? They made permanent military 
roads ; and among the objects of interest which Europe now pre- 
sents are the remains of those Roman roads, which are shown to 
the curious inquirer. If there were no other monument remain- 
ing of the sagacity and of the illustrious deeds of the unfortunate 
captive of St. Helena, the internal improvements which he made, 
the road from Hamburgh to Basle, would perpetuate his memory 
to future ages. In making these allusions, let me not be misun- 
derstood. I do not desire to see military roads established for 
the purpose of conquest, but of defence ; and as a part of that 
preparation which should be made in a season of peace for a sea- 
son of war. I do not wish to see this country ever in that com- 
plete state of preparation for war, for which some contend ; that 
is, that we should constantly have a large standing army, well dis- 
ciplined, and always ready to act. I want to see the bill reported 
by my friend from Ohio, or some other, embracing an effective 
militia system, passed into a law ; and a chain of roads and canals, 
by the aid of which our physical means can be promptly trans- 
ported to any required point. These, connected with a small 
military establishment to keep up our forts and garrisons, consti- 
tute the kind of preparation for war, which, it appears to me, this 
country ought to make. No man, who has paid the least atten- 
tion to the operations of modern war, can have failed to remark, 
how essential good roads and canals are to the success of those 
operations. How often have battles been won by celerity and 
rapidity of movement ? It is one of the most essential circum- 
stances in war. But, without good roads, it is impossible. Mem- 
bers will recall to their recollection the fact, that, in the senate, 
several years ago, an honorable friend of mine [Mr. Bayard], 
whose premature death I shall ever deplore, who was an ornament 
to the councils of his country, and who, when abroad, was the 
able and fearless advocate of her rights, did, in supporting a sub- 
scription which he proposed the United States bank should make 
to the stock of the Delaware and Chesapeake canal company, 
earnestly recommend the measure as connected with our opera- 
tions in war. I listened to my friend with some incredulity, and 
thought he pushed his argument too far. I had, soon after, a 
practical evidence of its justness. For, in travelling from Phila- 
delphia, in the fall of 1813, I saw transporting, by government, 
from Elk river to the Delaware, large quantities of massy timbers 



464 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

lor the construction of the Guerriere, or the Franklin, or both , 
and, judging from the number of wagons and horses, and the num- 
ber of days employed, I believe the additional expense of that 
single operation would have gone very far to complete that canal, 
whose cause was espoused with so much eloquence in the senate, 
and with so much effect, too — bills having passed that body more 
than once to give aid, in some shape or other, to that canal. 
With notorious facts like this, is it not obvious, that a line of mil- 
itary canals is not only necessary and proper, but almost indis- 
pensable to the war-making power ?" 

Nothing can be more evident, than that the constitution was 
formed for common and general purposes of the Union, and that, 
to accomplish such comprehensive objects, the entire Union is the 
theatre — the range of jurisdiction. It is absurd, therefore, to al- 
lege an encroachment on state-rights, when the general government 
passes into their respective bounds to erect national works, or dis- 
charge any other federal functions, such as in its judgment are 
" necessary and proper for carrying into execution" its specific 
powers. It is obliged to go there, or do nothing. The tenth article 
of the amendments of the constitution has clearly defined the joint 
action of the federal and state authorities on the same ground — the 
first to use all the powers granted, and the second to use those 
which are neither resigned nor prohibited, by the compact. 

The importance of internal improvements for purposes of war, 
is most emphatically inculcated in the facts of the disadvantages 
suffered in the war of 1812, for want of them. The cost of that 
war was one hundred and sixty millions of dollars ; and it is sta- 
ted by a " Southern Planter," in his " Notes on Political Econo- 
my," that eighty millions, or one half of this debt, was incurred 
for transportation ; that in supplying the forces on the Canada 
frontier, " every barrel of flour cost fifty dollars, every barrel of 
pork eighty dollars, and every cannon used there twice as much in 
the transportation, as the cost of making it!" The disasters 
in that quarter may be supposed to have resulted from this great 
and insuperable impediment — the want of roads and canals. The 
war was far less effective, and no doubt protracted, by this cause ; 
and the consequent additional expenses would have created the 
desired facilities, to all the important points, twice over. The 
slow progress of the mail has been a detriment to the business and 
trade of the country more than equal to the cost of transportation 
by adequate internal improvements ; and the utter impossibility, 
to a great extent, and in large districts, of moving off the heavy 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 465 

products of the soil and forests, added to the great expense of 
those which have found their way to market, thus diminishing 
their value to the producers, must have been another aggregate 
loss, even in a few years, more than sufficient to have created the 
means of saving it by internal improvements. Mr. Clay says : — 

" It was the opinion of Mr. Jefferson, that, although there was 
no general power vested by the constitution in Congress, to con- 
struct roads and canals, without the consent of the states, yet such 
a power might be exercised with their assent. Mr. Jefferson not 
only held this opinion in the abstract, but he practically executed 
it in the instance of the Cumberland road ; and how? First, by 
a compact made with the state of Ohio, for the application of a 
specified fund, and then by compacts with Virginia, Pennsylvania, 
and Maryland, to apply the fund so set apart within their respect- 
ive limits." 

It must be confessed, that this was an ingenious resort, to get 
over or around the constitution as interpreted — the same in princi- 
ple as the project of one of the bank bills of 1841, which proposed 
to establish branches in those states that should not object. The 
difference, if there be any, is, that Mr. Jefferson professed to be- 
lieve in the paramount right of the states, whereas, the bank project, 
without acting openly on an avowed fundamental principle, came 
somewhat nearer to what is commonly denominated a trick. It 
was at least a tacit proposal to waive the question of right, and di- 
vide jurisdiction — the natural effect of which would be to confound 
rights, and leave them in a state of incertitude, more embarrassing 
for after use, than not to have touched the subject. Mr. Clay was 
opposed to this, as being not less unmanly, than unstatesmanlike, 
though he was, notwithstanding, compelled to a mortifying com- 
promise, for the good of the country, all which availed nothing, 
but to furnish occasion for insult from the very quarter, toward 
which the compromise, by so much sacrifice of feeling, was gen- 
erously tendered. 

Mr. Clay proceeded to say : — 

"I am entirely at a loss to comprehend how gentlemen, consist- 
ently with their own principles, can justify the erection of the Cum- 
berland road. No man is prouder than I am of that noble mon- 
ument of the provident care of the nation, and of the public spirit 
of its projectors ; and I trust that, in spite of all constitutional and 
other scruples, here or elsewhere, an appropriation will be made to 
complete that road. I confess, however, freely, that I am en- 
tirelv unable to conceive of any principle on which that road can 



466 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

be supported, that would not uphold the general power contend- 
ed for. 

" I will now examine the opinion of Mr. Madison. Of all the 
acts of that pure, virtuous, and illustrious statesman, whose ad- 
ministration has so powerfully tended to advance the glory, honor, 
and prosperity of this country, I most regret, for his sake, and for 
the sake of the country, the rejection of the bill of the last ses- 
sion. I think it irreconcilable with Mr. Madison's own principles 
— those great, broad, and liberal principles, on which he so ably 
administered the government. And, sir, when I appeal to the 
members of the last Congress, who are now in my hearing, I am 
authorized to say, with regard to the majority of them, that no cir- 
cumstance, not even an earthquake, that should have swallowed up 
one half of this city, could have excited more surprise than when 
it was first communicated to this house, that Mr. Madison had re- 
jected his own bill — I say his own bill, for his message at the 
opening of the session meant nothing, if it did not recommend 
such an exercise of power as was contained in that bill. My friend, 
who is near me [Mr. Johnson, of Virginia], the operations of whose 
vigorous and independent mind depend upon his own internal per- 
ceptions, has expressed himself with becoming manliness, and 
thrown aside the authority of names, as having no bearing with him 
on the question. But their authority has been referred to, and will 
have influence with others. It is impossible, moreover, to disguise 
the fact, that the question is now a question between the executive 
on the one side, and the representatives of the people on the other. 
So it is understood in the country, and such is the fact. Mr. 
Madison enjoys, in his retreat at Montpelier, the repose and the 
honors due to his eminent and laborious services ; and I would be 
among the last to disturb it. However painful it is to me to ani- 
madvert upon any of his opinions, I feel perfectly sure that the 
circumstance can only be viewed by him with an enlightened lib- 
erality. What are the opinions which have been expressed by 
Mr. Madison on this subject ? I will not refer to all the messages 
wherein he has recommended internal improvements ; but to that 
alone which he addressed to Congress, at the commencement of 
the last session, which contains this passage : — 

" * I particularly invite agai7i the attention of Congress to the ex- 
pediency of exercising their existing jwivers, and where necessary, 
of resorting to the prescribed mode of enlarging them, in order to 
effectuate a comprehensioe system of roads and canals, such as will 
have the effect of drawing more closely together every part of our 
country, by promoting intercourse and improvements, and by in- 
creasing the share of every part in the common stock of national 
prosperity.' 

" In the examination of this passage, two positions force them- 
selves upon our attention. The first is, the assertion that there are 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 467 

existing powers in Congress to effectuate a comprehensive system 
of roads and canals, the effect of which would be to draw the 
different parts of the country more closely together. , And I would 
candidly admit, in the second place, that it was intr/nated, that, in 
the exercise of those existing powers, some defect might be dis- 
covered which would render an amendment _q1 the constitution 
necessary. Nothing could be more clearly uffirmed than the first 
position ; but in the message of Mr. Mac'ison returning the bill, 
passed in consequence of his recommenda^gOn, he has not specified 
a solitary case to which those existing poHi?rs are applicable ; he 
has not told us what he meant by those ex.V5tlng powers ; and the 
general scope of his reasoning, in that m^;,; ^age, if well founded, 
proves that there are no existing powers wjiatever. It is apparent, 
that Mr. Madison himself has not examin^id some of those princi- 
pal sources of the constitution from which, during this debate, the 
power has been derived. I deeply regret, and I know that Mr. 
Madison regretted, that the circumstances under which the bill was 
presented to him (the last day but one of a most busy session) de- 
prived him of an opportunity of that thorough investigation of 
which no man is more capable. It is certain, that, taking his two 
messages at the same session together, they are perfectly irrecon- 
cilable. What, moreover, was the nature of that bill? It did not 
apply the money to any specific object of internal improvement, 
nor designate any particular mode in which it should be applied ; 
but merely set apart and pledged the fund to the general purpose, 
subject to the future disposition of Congress. If, then, there were 
any supposable case whatever, to which Congress might apply 
money in the erection of a road, or cutting a canal, the bill did 
not violate the constitution. And it ought not to have been antici- 
pated, that money constitutionally appropriated by one Congress, 
would be unconstitutionally expended by another. 

" I come now to the message of Mr. Monroe ; an .' if, by the 
communication of his opinion to Congress, he intended to prevent 
discussion, he has most wofuUy failed. I know that, according to 
a most venerable and excellent usage, the opinion, neither of the 
president nor of the senate, upon any proposition depending in this 
house, ought to be adverted to. Even in the parliament of Great 
Britain, a member who would refer to the opinion of the sovereign, 
in such a case, would be instantly called to order ; but under the 
extraordinary circumstances of the president having, with, I have 
no doubt, the best motives, volunteered his opinion on this head, 
and inverted the order of legislation by beginning where it should 
end, I am compelled, most reluctantly, to refer to that opinion. I 
can not but deprecate the practice of which the president has. In 
this instance, set the example to his successors. The constitutional 
order of legislation supposes that every bill originating in one 
house, shall be there deliberately investigated, without influence 



468 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

from an) other branch of the legislature; and then remitted to the 
other house for a like free and unbiased consideration. Having 
passed both Rouses, it is to be laid before the president ; signed if 
approved, anQ\if disapproved, to be returned, with his objections, 
to the originating house. In this manner, entire freedom of thought 
and of action is si^cured, and the president finally sees the propo- 
sition in the most matured form which Congress can give to it. 
The practical effect, to say no more, of forestalling the legislative 
opinion, and telling us p.hat we may or may not do, will be to de- 
prive the president h'i>V elf of the opportunity of considering a 
proposition so matured • and us of the benefit of his reasoning ap- 
plied specifically to suci; proposition. For the constitution further 
enjoins it upon him, to ,{cate his objections upon returning the bill. 
The originating house i -then to reconsider it, and deliberately ij 
weigh those objections ; and it is further required, when the ques- 
tion is again taken, ' Shall the bill pass, those objections notwith 
standing?' that the votes shall be solemnly spread, by ayes and 
noes, upon the record. Of this opportunity of thus recording our 
opinions, in matters of great public concern, we are deprived if 
we submit to the innovation of the president. I will not press this 
part of the subject further. I repeat, again and again, that I have 
no doubt but that the president was actuated by the purest motives. 
I am compelled, however, in the exercise of that freedom of opin- 
ion which, so long as I exist I will maintain, to say that the pro- 
ceeding is irregular and unconstitutional. Let us, however, ex- 
amine the reasoning and opinion of the president. 

"'A difference of opinion has existed from the first formation 
of our constitution to the present time, among our most enlightened 
and virtuous citizens respecting the right of Congress to establish 
a system oC internal improvement. Taking into view the trust 
with which I am now honored, it would be improper, after what 
has passed, that this discussion should be revived, with an uncer- 
tainty of my opinion respecting the right. Disregarding early im- 
pressions, I have bestowed on the subject all the deliberation which 
its great importance and a just sense of my duty required and the 
result is, a settled conviction in my mind, that Congress does not 
possess the right. It is not contained in any of the specified 
powers granted to Congress ; nor can I consider it incidental to, 
or a necessary mean, viewed on the most liberal scale, for carrying 
into effect any of the powers which are specifically granted. In 
communicating this result, I can not resist the obligation which I 
feel, to suggest to Congress the propriety of recommending to the 
states the adoption of an amendment to the constitution, which 
shall give the right in question. In cases of doubtful construction, 
especially of such vital interest, it comports with the nature and 
origin of our institutions, and will contribute much to preserve 
them, to apply to our constituents for an explicit grant of power. 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 469 

We may confidently rely, that, if it appears to thiir satisfaction 
that the power is necessary, it will always be granted.' 

"In this passage, the president has furnished us with no reason- 
ing, no argument in support of his opinion — nothing addressed to 
the understanding. He gives us, indeed, an historical account of 
the operations of his own mind, and he asserts that he has made a 
laborious effort to conquer his early impressions, but that the result 
is a settled conviction against the power, without a single reason. 
In his position, that the power must be specifically granted, or in- 
cident to a power so granted, it has been seen, that I have the 
honor to entirely concur with him ; but, he says, the power is not 
among the specified powers. Has he taken into consideration the 
clause respecting post-roads, and told us how and why that does 
not convey the power ? If he had acted within what I conceive to 
be his constitutional sphere of rejecting the bill, after it had passed 
both houses, he must have learned that great stress was placed on 
that clause, and we should have been enlightened by his comments 
upon it. As to his denial of the power, as an incident to any of 
the express grants, I would have thought that we might have safely 
appealed to the experience of the president, during the late war, 
when the country derived so much benefit from his judicious ad- 
ministration of the duties of the war department, whether roads 
and canals for military purposes were not essential to celerity and 
successful result in the operations of armies. This part of the 
message is all assertion, and contains no argument which I can 
comprehend, or which meets the points contended for during this 
debate. Allow me here to say, and I do it without the least disre- 
spect to that branch of the government, on whose opinions and acts 
it has been rendered my painful duty to comment ; — let me say, in 
reference to any man, however elevated his station, even if he be 
endowed with the power and prerogatives of a sovereign, that his 
acts are wo.lh infinitely more, and are more intelligible, than mere 
paper ser iments or declarations. And what have been the acts 
of the president? During his tour of the last summer, did he 
not order a road to be cut or repaired from near Plattsburgh to the 
St. Lawrence ?" 

It is remarkable how a public man, acting, either in the capacity 
of legislation or magistracy, is liable to be tripped on his own 
ground, when he takes up his position on an untenable principle. 
No doubt Mr. Monroe thought he was doing very right — he indeed 
was — and Mr. Clay approved of it — when he set those soldiers to 
work on the Plattsburgh and St. Lawrence road. The common- 
wealth of New York did not complain. There was no alarm raised 
about the monopolizing stretch of central power. 

" The president, then [said Mr. Clay, referring to this fact], ordered 



470 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

a road of considerable extent to be constructed or repaired, on h"s 
sole authority, in a time of profound peace, when no enemy threat- 
ened the country, and when, in relation to the power as to which 
alone that road could be useful in time of war, there exists the 
best understanding, and a prospect of lasting friendship, greater 
than at any other period. On his sole authority the president 
acted, and we are already called upon by the chairman of the 
committee of ways and means to sanction the act by an appropria- 
tion. This measure has been taken, too, without the consent of 
the state of New York ; and what is wonderful, when we consider 
the magnitude of the state-rights which are said to be violated, 
without even a protest on the part of that staje against it. On the 
contrary, I understand, from some of the military officers who are 
charged with the execution of the work, what is very extraordinary, 
t'hat the people through whose quarter of the country the road 
passes, do not view it as a national calamity ; that they would be 
very glad that the president would visit them often, and that he 
would order a road to be cut and improved, at the national expense, 
every time he should visit them. Other roads, in other parts of 
the Union, have, it seems, been likewise ordered, or their execu- 
tion, at the pubhc expense, sanctioned by the executive, without 
the concurrence of Congress. If the president has the power to 
cause these public improvements to be executed at his pleasure, 
whence is it derived? If any member will stand up in this place 
and say the president is clothed with this authority, and that it is 
denied to Congress, let us hear from him ; and let him point to 
the clause of the constitution which v^ests it in the executive and 
withholds it from the legislative branch. 

" There is no such clause; there is no such exclusive execu- 
tive power. The power is derivable by the executive only from 
those provisions of the constitution which charge him with the 
duties of commanding the physical force of the count v, and the 
employment of that force in war, and the preservatu i of the 
public tranquillity, and in the execution of the laws. But 
Congress has paramount powers to the president. It alone can 
declare wa-r, can raise armies, can provide for calling out the mi- 
litia, in the specified instances, and can raise and appropriate the 
ways and means necessary to those objects. Or is it come to this, 
that there are to be two rules of construction for the constitution — 
one, an enlarged rule, for the executive, and another, a restricted 
rule, for the legislature ? Is it already to be held, that, according to 
the genius and nature of our constitution, powers of this kind may 
be safely intrusted to the executive, but, when attempted to be 
exercised by the legislature, are so alarming and dangerous, that a 
war with all the allied powers would be less terrible, and that the 
nation should clothe itself straightway in sackcloth and ashes ! 
No, sir ; if the power belongs only by implication to the chief 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 471 

magistrate, it is placed both by implication and express grant in 
the hands of Congress. I am so far from condemning the act of 
the president, to which I have referred, that I think it deserving 
of high approbation. That it was within the scope of his consti- 
tutional authority, I have no doubt ; and I sincerely trust, that the 
secretary at war will, in time of peace, constantly employ in that 
way the military force. It will at the same time guard that force 
against the vices incident to indolence and inaction, and correct 
the evil of subtracting from the mass of the labor of society, where 
labor is more valuable than in any other country, that portion of it 
which enters into the composition of the army. But I most sol- 
emnly protest against any exercise of powers of this kind by the 
president, which are denied to Congress. And, if the opinions 
expressed by him, in his message, were communicated, or are to be 
used here, to influence the judgment of the house, their authority 
is more than countervailed by the authority of his deliberate acts. 

" Of all the modes in which a government can employ its sur- 
plus revenue, none is more permanently beneficial than that of 
internal improvement. Fixed to the soil, it becomes a durable 
part of the land itself, diffusing comfort, and activity, and anima- 
tion, on all sides. The first direct effect is on the agricultural 
community, into whose pockets comes the difference in the expense 
of transportation between good and bad ways. Thus, if the price 
of transporting a barrel of flour by the erection of the Cumberland 
turnpike should be lessened two dollars, the producer of the arti- 
cle would receive that two dolfars more now than formerly. 

" But, putting aside all pecuniary considerations, there may be 
political motives sufficiently powerful alone to justify certain in- 
ternal improvements. Does not our country present such ? How 
are they to be effected, if things are left to themselves ? I will 
not press the subject further. I am but too sensible how much I 
have abused the patience of the committee by trespassing so long 
upon its attention. The magnitude of the question, and the deep 
interest I feel in its rightful decision, must be my apology. We 
are now making the last effort to establish our power, and I call 
on the friends of Congress, of this house, or the true friends of 
state rights (not charging others with intending to oppose them), 
to rally round the constitution, and to support by their votes, on 
this occasion, the legitimate powers of the legislature. If we do 
nothing this session but pass an abstract resolution on the subject, 
I shall, under all circumstances, consider it a triumph for the best 
interests of the country, of which posterity will, if we do not, reap 
the benefit. I trust, that by the decision which shall be given, we 
shall assert, uphold, and maintain, the authority of Congress, not- 
withstanding all that V»as been or may be said against it." 

Vol. I.— 29 



472 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

The resolution declaring the power to be vested in Congress by the 
constitution, to make appropriations for the construction of military 
roads, post-roads, and canals, was adopted by a vote of 90 to 75 ; 
and the principle involved has been practically applied by acts of 
Congress, from that time to the present, in appropriations for the 
continuance of the Cumberland road, and various other objects of 
internal improvement, by roads, canals, improving river navigation 
harbors, &c., notwithstanding it has been occasionally checked Y 
executive vetoes, and almost constantly discouraged by executive 
influence. The argument made by Mr. Clay on this occasion, 
will stand as a just tribute to his ability as a constitutional law- 
yer ; and from its aspects and bearings, in relation to the great and 
various interests of the country, it is not a less creditable monu- 
ment to his fame as a patriot. By the stand he took at this time 
the tide of executive influence, which seemed to menace the policy 
of internal improvement with subversion and final overthrow, was 
rolled backward ; and though it has again and again rushed to the 
onset, in the hands of General Jackson, Mr. Van Buren, and Mr. 
Tyler, the policy has nevertheless been kept alive, though it has, in 
a great measure, been forced to change hands, from the federal to 
thfi state authorities. 

Notwithstanding all the opposition which appropriations for in- 
ternal improvement have met with, by the federal executives, from 
professed scruples as to constitutional power, it has been seen, that 
Mr. Madison and Mr. Monroe were in favor of the policy, and 
recommended an amendment of the constitution with that view. 
So also Mr. Jefferson, as will appear from the following passage 
in his annual message of 1806 : — 

" The question now comes forward — To what other object shall 
these surpluses [anticipated] be appropriated, and the whole sur- 
plus of imposts, after the entire discharge of the public debt, and 
during those intervals when the purposes of war shall not call for 
them ? Shall we suppress imposts, and give that advantage to 
foreign over domestic manufactures ? On a few articles of more 
general and more necessary use, the suppression will doubtless be 
right ; but the great mass of the articles on which impost is paid, 
are foreign luxuries, purchased by those only who are rich enough 
to afford themselves the use of them. Their patriotism would cer- 
tainly prefer its continuance and application to the great purposes 
of public education, roads, rivers, canals, and such other objects of 
public improvement, as it may be thought proper to add to the con- 
stitutional enumeration of federal powers. By these operations 



INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 473 

new channels of communication will be opened between the states, 
the lines of separation will disappear, their interests will be identi- 
fied, and their union cemented by new and indissoluble ties." 

Mr. Jefferson's views, as here presented, were most enlarged 
and comprehensive, embracing not only internal improvements, 
but education, and the protective policy. 

General Jackson also, in his annual message of 1830, contem- 
plating the states as agents for using the surplus funds of the na- 
tional treasury in projects of internal improvement, enters into the 
following argument : — 

" It may sometimes happen that the interests of particular states 
would not be deemed to coincide with the general interest, in rela- 
tion to improvement within such states. But if the danger to be 
apprehended from this source is sufficient to require it, a discretion 
might be reserved to Congress to direct to such improvements of 
a general character as the states concerned might not be disposed 
to unite in, and the application of the quotas of those states, under 
the restriction of confining to each state the expenditure of its ap- 
propriate quota. It may, however, be assumed as a safe general 
rule, that such improvements as serve to increase the prosperity 
of the respective states in which they are made, by giving new 
facilities to trade, and thereby augmenting the wealth and comfort 
of their inhabitants, constitute the surest mode of conferring perma- 
nent and substantial advantages upon the whole. The strength as 
well as the true glory of the confederacy are founded on the pros- 
perity and power of the several independent sovereignties of which 
it is composed, and on the certainty with which they can be brought 
into successful active cooperation through the agency of the fed- 
eral government." 

So obvious, comprehensive, and vast, are the benefits of this* 
policy, and so favorably has it ever been entertained by the people, 
that no chief magistrate of the nation, however much disposed, 
has ever dared to come out openly against it. However reluc- 
tantly, all of them have been forced to recommend it in some form. 
An unwiUing sanction, in such a case, is perhaps more forcible, in 
view of the reasons by which it is extorted, than a voluntary one. 
It demonstrates the judgment of the general mind — the common 
sense of the great commonwealth. 

In view of the citations on this subject, made from Mr. Clay's 
speeches, comprehending, as they do, the main points, and present- 
ing them in the strongest light, it can hardly be deemed necessary, 
and might seem superfluous, to attempt any further elucidation of 
the theme. In the midst of fiery trials, and against powerful 



474 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 

machinations, combined and single — in the face of executive ve- 
toes, and in spite of executive oppugnancy in a variety of other 
forms — the policy of internal improvement, as originated and ad- 
vocated by Mr. Clay, has in a good degree triumphed. It has at 
least so far succeeded, as to give the nation a taste of its blessings, 
and it can not now be arrested. The grea> obstacles of nature over 
the face of the country, and under the surface of the waters, have 
been surmounted, and are constantly yielding to art and toil, skil- 
fully and vigorously applied, creating more intimate relations be- 
tween all parts of the republic, and cementing the Union with 
stronger social, political, and commercial ties. Intelligence circu- 
lates on the wings of the elements, lashed to supernatural speed 
by the appliances of science and art ; travel treads upon its heels ; 
and the trade of the whole country is worked more and more vig- 
orously by the vast machinery and newly-created powers of inter- 
nal improvementa. 



MB. clay's public LAND POLICY. 475 



CHAPTER XX. 

Mr. Clay's Land Policy.— His Report in 1832.— Reasons of its Reference 
to the Committee on Manufactures.— Statistical Tables.— Extracts from Mr. 
Clay's Speeches.— General Jackson's Pocketing the Land Bill.— The Argument' 

It is deemed economical in all respects of space and argument, 
ill executing the task, and in accomplishing the object, of these 
pages, so far as they respect the subject here propounded, to throw 
into a note below, some extracts from Mr. Clay's report on the 
public lands, presented to the senate, April 16, 1832.* Thev 

• EXTRACTS FROM MR. CLAY'S REPORT ON THE PUBLIC LANDS IN SENATE, 

APRIL 16, 1832. 

" The public lands belonging to the general government, are situated, first, 
within the limits of the United States, as defined by the treaty of peace which ter- 
minated the revolutionary war ; and secondly, within the boundaries of Louisi- 
ana and Florida, as ceded by France and Spain, respectively, to the United States. 
1. At the commencement of the revolutionary war, there were, in some of the 
states, large bodies of waste and unappropriated lands, principally west of the 
Allegany mountains, and in the southern or southwestern quarters of the Union ; 
while, in others, of more circumscribed, or better defined limits, no such resource 
existed. During the progress of that war, the question was agitated, what should 
be done with these lands, in the event of its successful termination ? That ques- 
tion was likely to lead to paralyzing divisions and jealousies. The states not 
containing any considerable quantity of waste lands, contended that, as the war 
was waged with united means, with equal sacrifices, and at the common expense, 
the waste lands ought to be considered as a common property, and not be exclu- 
sively appropriated to the benefit of the particular states within which they hap- 
pened to be situated. These, however, resisted the claim, upon the ground tliat 
each state was entitled to the whole of the territory, whether waste or cultivated, 
included within its chartered limits. To check the progress of discontent, and ar- 
rest the serious consequences to which the agitation of this question might lead. 
Congress recommended to the states to make liberal cessions of the waste and un- 
ceded lands to the United States, and on the 10th day of October, 1780, 'Resolved, 
that the unappropriated lands that may be ceded or relinquished to the United 
States, by any particular sta.te, pursuant to the recommendation of Congress of 
the 6th of September last, shall be disposed of for the common benefit of the Uni- 
ted States,' &c. 

" In conformity with the recommendation of Congress, the several states con- 
taining waste and uncultivated lands, made cessions of them to the United States. 
The declared object having been substantially the same in all of these cessions, it 
is only necessary to advert to the terms of some of them. The first, in order of 
lime, was that of New York, made on the first day of March, 1781, by its delega- 
tion in Congress, in pursuance of an act of the legislature of the state ; and the 
terms of the deed of cession expressly provide, that the ceded lands and territo- 
ries were to be held 'to and for the only use and benefit of such of the state.* as 
are, or shall become, parties to the articles of confederation.' That of Virginia 
was the next in date, but by far the most important of all the cessions madi by 



4T6 MR. CLAV'S PUBLIC LAND POLICy. 

who wish to understand Mr. Clay's public land policy, will read 
this document attentively, making due allowances for the growth 
of the country since that time, and the greater changes in some 

the different states, both as respects the extent and value of the country ceded. 
It comprehended the right of that commonwealth to the vast territory northwest 
of the river Ohio, embracing but not confined to the limits of the present states 
of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. The deed of cession was executed by the delega- 
tion of Virginia in Congress, in 1784, agreeably to an act of the legislature, passed 
in 1783 ; and among other conditions, the deed explicitly declares, ' that all the 
lands within the territory so ceded to the United States, and not reserved for or ap- 
propriated to any of the beforementioned purposes, or disposed of in bounties to 
the oflScers and soldiers of the American army, shall be considered a common 
fund; for the use and benefit of such of the United States as have become, or 
shall become, members of the confederation or federal alliance of the said states, 
Virginia inclusive, according to their usual respective proportions, in the general 
charge and expenditure, and shall be faithfully and bona fide disposed of for that 
purpose, and for no other purpose or use whatever.' Passing by the cessions 
with other states, prompted by a magnanimous spirit of union and patriotism, 
successively made, we come to the last in the series, that of the state of Geor- 
gia, in 1802. The articles of agi'eement and cession entered into between that 
state and the United States, among various other conditions, contain the une- 
quivocal declaration, ' that all the lands ceded by this agreement to the United 
States, shall, after satisfying the abovementioned payment of one million two 
hundred and fifty thousand dollars to the state of Georgia, and the grants rec- 
ognised by the preceding conditions, be considered as a common fund for the use 
and benefit of the United States, Georgia included, and shall be faithfully disposed 
of for that purpose, and for no other use or purpose whatever.' 

" Thus, by the clear and positive terms of these acts of cession, was a great 
public and national trust created and assumed by the general government. It be- 
came solemnly bound to hold and administer the lands ceded, as a common fund 
for the use and benefit of all the states, and for no other use or purpose whatever. 
To waste or misapply this fund, or to divert it from the common benefit for which 
it was conveyed, would be a violation of the trust. The general government has 
no more power, rightfully, to cede the lands thus acquired to one of the new 
states, without a fair equivalent, than it could retrocede them to the state or 
states from which they were originally obtained. There would indeed be much 
more equity in the latter than in the former case. Nor is the moral responsibility 
of the general government at all weakened by the consideration that, if it were 
80 unmindful of its duty as to disregard the sacred character of the trust, there 
might be no competent power, peacefully applied, which could coerce its faithful 
execution. 

" 2d. The other source whence the public lands of the United States have been 
acquired, are, first, the treaty of Louisiana concluded in 1802; and secondly, the 
treaty of Florida, signed in 1819. By the first, all the country west of the Missis- 
sippi, and extending to the Pacific ocean, known as Louisiana, which had succes- 
sively belonged to France, Spain, and France again, including the island of New 
Orleans, and stretching east of the Mississippi to the Perdido, was transferred to 
the United States, in consideration of the sum of fifteen millions of dollars, which 
they stipulated to pay, and have since punctually paid, to France, besides other 
conditions deemed favorable and important to her interests. By the treaty of 
Florida, both the provinces of East and West Florida, whether any portion of 
them was or was not comprehended within the limits of Louisiana, were ceded to 
the United States in consideration, besides other things, of the payment of five 
millions of dollars, which they agreed to pay, and have since accordingly paid. 
" The large pecuniary considerations thus paid to these two foreign powers, 
were drawn from the treasury of the people of the United States, and, conse- 
quently, the countries for which they formed the equivalents, ought to be held 
and deemed for the common benefit of the people of the United States. To divert 
the lands from that general object ; to misapply or sacrifice them ; to squander or 
improvidently cast them away, would be alike subversive of the interests of the 
people of the United States, and contrary to the plain dictates of the duty by 
which the general government stands bound to the states and to the whole people. 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 477 

States than in others, as they affect the several classes of statistical 
information. There are the principles, and the full development 
of the scheme. 

" It appears (from a report of the secretary of the treasury to the house of rep- 
resentatives, of the 6th of April, 1832) that the aggregate of all sums of money 
which have been expended by the United States, in the acquisition of the public lands, 
including interest on account of the purchases of Louisiana and Florida, down to 
the 30th of September, 1831, and including also expenses in their sale and man- 
agement, is $48,077,551 40; and that the amount of money received at the treas- 
ury for proceeds of the sales of the public lands, down to the 30th of September, 
1831, is $37,272,713 31. The government, therefore, has not been reimbursed bj 
$10,804,838 09. According to the same report, it appears, that the estimated 
amount of unsold lands, on which the foreign and Indiaa titles have been extin 
guished, is 227,293,884 acres, within the limits of the new states and territo 
ries; and that the Indian title remains on 113,577,869 acres within the same lim- 
its; that there have been granted to Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Alabama, for in- 
ternal improvements, 2,187,665 acres; for colleges, academies, and universities, 
in the new states and territories, the quantity of 508,009 acres ; for education, be- 
ing the thirty-sixth part of the public lands appropriated for common schools, the 
amount of 7,952,538 acres ; and for seats of government in some of the new 
states and territories, 21,589 acres. By a report of the commissioner of the gen- 
eral land office, communicated to Congress with the annual message of the presi- 
dent of the United States, in December, 1827, the total quantity of the public 
lands beyond the boundaries of the new states and territories, was estimated to be 
750,000,000 of acres. The aggregate, therefore, of all the unsold and unappro- 
priated public lands of the United States, surveyed and unsurveyed, on which the 
Indian title remains or has been extinguished, lying within or without the bounda- 
ries of the new states and territories, agreeably to the two reports now referred 
to, is 1,090,871,753 acres. There had been 138,988,224 acres surveyed, and the 
quantity of only 19,239,412 acres sold down to the 1st of January, 1826. When 
the information called for shall be received, the subsequent surveys and sales, 
down to the present period, will be ascertained. 

" The committee are instructed by the senate, to inquire into the expediency of 
reducing the price of the public lands, and also of ceding them to the several 
states in which they are situated, on reasonable terms. The committee will pro- 
ceed to examine these two subjects of inquiry distinctly, beginning with that which 
relates to a reduction of price. 

" 1. According to the existing mode of selling the public lands, they are first 
offered at public auction for what they will bring, in a free and fair competi- 
tion among the purchasers. When the public sales cease, the lands remaining 
unsold may be bought, from time to time, at the established rate of one dollar and 
a quarter per acre. The price was reduced to that sum in 1820, from two dollars 
per acre, at which it had previously stood from the first establishment of the pres- 
ent system of selling the public lands. A leading consideration with Congress in 
the reduction of the price, was that of substituting cash sales for the credits which 
had been before allowed, and which, on many accounts, it ivas deemed expedient 
to abolish. A further reduction of price, if called for b^' the public interests, 
must be required, either, first, because the government now demands more than a 
fair price for the public lands; or, secondly, because the existing price retards in- 
juriously the settlement and population of the new states and territories. These 
suggestions deserve separate and serious consideration. 

" First, the committee possess no means of determining the exact value of all the 
public lands now in market ; nor is it material, at the present time, that the pre- 
cise worth of each township or section should be accurately known. It is pre- 
sumable that a considerable portion of the immense quantity offered for sale, or 
held by the United States, would not now command, and may not be intrinsically 
worth, the minimum price fixed by the law; on the other hand, it is certain that 
a large part is worth more. If there could be a discrimination made, and the 
government had any motives to hasten the sales beyond the regular demands of 
the population, it might be proper to establish different rates, according to the 
classes of land ; but the government having no inducement to such acceleration, 
hat hitherto proceeded on the liberal policy of establishing a moderate price, and 



478 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 



The importance of this subject is briefly represented by Mr. 
Clay, in his speech when the bill brought in with this report was 
under debate, as follows : — 

" No subject which had presented itself to the present, or per- 
haps any preceding Congress, was of greater magnitude than that 

by subdivision of the sections, so as to accommodate the poorer citizens, has 
placed the acquisition of a home within the reach of every industrious man. For 
one hundred dollars any one may now purchase eighty, and for fifty dollars, forty 
acres of first-rate land, yielding, with proper cultivation, from fifty to eighty bush- 
els of Indian corn per acre, or other equivalent crops. 

" There is no more satisfactory criterion of the fairness of the price of an arti- 
cle, than that arising from the briskness of the sales when it is ofl'ered in the 
market. On applying this rule, the conclusion would seem to be irresistible, that 
the established price is not too high. The amount of the sales in the year 1828, 
was $1,018,308 75; in 1829, $r,517,175 13; in 1830, $2,329,356 14^; and du- 
ring the year 1831, $3,000,000. And the secretary of the treasury observes, in 
his annual report, at the commencement of this session, that ' the receipts from the 
public lands, during the present year, it will be perceived, have likewise exceeded 
the estimates, and Ihdeed have gone beyond all former example. It is believed 
that, notwithstanding the large amount of scrip and forfeited land stock that may 
still be absorbed in payment for lands, yet, if the surveys now projected be com- 
pleted, the receipts from this source of revenue, will not fall greatly below those 
of the present year.' And he estimates the receipts, during the current year, 
from this source, at three millions of dollars. It is incredible to suppose that the 
amount of sales would have risen to so large a sum, if the price had been un- 
reasonably high. The committee are aware that the annual receipts may be ex- 
pected to fluctuate, as fresh lands, in favorite districts, are brought into market, 
and according to the activity or sluggishness of emigration in difl'erent years. 

" Against any considerable reduction in the price of the public lands, unless it 
be necessary to a more rapid population of the new states, which will be hereaf- 
ter examined, there are weighty, if not decisive considerations. 

"First, the government is the proprietor of much the largest quantity of the un- 
seeited lands of the United States. What it has in market, bears a large propor- 
tion to the whole of the unoccupied lands within their limits. If a considerable 
quantity of any article, land, or any commodity whatever, is in market, the price 
at which it is sold, will affect, in some degree, the value of the whole of that ar- 
ticle, whether exposed to sale or not. The influence of the reduction of the price 
of the public lands, would probably be felt throughout the Union ; certainly in 
all the western states, and most in those which contain, or are nearest to, the 
public lands. There ought to be the most cogent and conclusive reasons for 
adopting a measure which might seriously impair the value of the property of the 
yeomanry of the country. While they are decidedly the most important class in 
the community, most patient, patriotic, and acquiescent in whatever public policy 
is pursued, they are unable or unwilling to resort to those means of union and 
concert which other interests employ to make themselves heard and respected. 
Government should, therefore, feel itself constantly bound to guard, with sedu- 
lous care, the rights and welfare of the great body of our yeomanry. Would it 
be just toward those who have heretofore purchased public lands, at high prices — 
to say nothing as to the residue of the agricultural interests of the United States — 
to make such a reduction, and thereby impair the value of their property ? Ought 
not any such plan of reduction, if adopted, to be accompanied with compensation 
for the injury which they would inevitably sustain ? 

" Secondly, a material reduction of price would excite the spirit of speculation, 
now dormant, and probably lead to a transfer of large quantities of the public 
domain, from the control of government to the hands of the speculator. At the 
existing price, and with such extensive districts as the public constantly offers in 
the market, there is no great temptation to speculation. The demand is regular, 
keeping pace with the itrosress of emigration, and is supplied on known and mod- 
erate terms. If the price were much reduced, the strongest incentives to the en- 
grossment of better lands would be presented to large capitalists, and the emi- 
grant, instead of being able to purchase from his own government, upon uniforro 



MR. CLAY S PUBLIC LAND POLICY. 479 

of the public lands. There was another, indeed, which possessed 
a more exciting and absorbing interest; but the excitement was 
happily but temporary in its nature. Long after we shall cease to 
be agitated by the tariff, ages after our manufactures shall have 
acquired a stability and perfection which will enable them success- 

and established conditions, might be compelled to give much higher and more 
fluctuating prices to the speculator. An illustration of this effecf is afforded by 
the military bounty lands granted during the late war. Thmwn into the market 
at prices below the government rate, they notoriously became an object of specu- 
lation, and have principally fallen into the hands of speculators, retarding the set- 
tlement of the districts which include them. 

" Thirdly, the greatest emigration that is believed now to take place, from any 
of the states, is from Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. The efi'ects of a material 
reduction in the price of the public lands, would be, first, to lessen the value of 
real estate in those three states ; secondly, to diminish their interest in the public 
domain, as a common fund for the benefit of all the states ; and thirdly, to offer 
what would operate as a bounty to further emigration from those states, occasion- 
ing more and more lands situated within them to be thrown into the market 
thereby not only lessening the value of their lands, but draining them of both 
their population and currency. 

" And, lastly, Congress has, within a few years, made large and liberal grants 
of the public lands to several states. To Ohio, 922,937 acres ; to Indiana, 384,728 
acres ; to Illinois, 480,000 acres ; and to Alabama, 400,000 acres ; — amounting 
together to 2,187,665 acres. Considerable portions of these lands yet remain un- 
sold. The reduction of the price of the public lands, generally, would impair the 
value of these grants, as well as injuriously affect that of the lands which have 
been sold in virtue of them." 

The report proceeds to answer the objections, first, that the price retards the 
sale ; and next, that the price is a tax ; both of which are well refuted. It was 
shown, that in the increase of population in the United States, from 1820 to 1830, 
as declared by the census, being from 9,579,873 to 12,716,697, the average increase 
of the seven new states, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Alabama, Mississippi, 
and Louisiana, was eighty-Jive per cent., while the average increase of the seventeen 
states, containing no part of the public lands, was only twenty-fire per cent., and 
that of the thirteen original states only seventeen percent. To the objection, that 
the public lands were not taxable for the expenses of the states in which they lie, 
it was answered, first, that, in lieu thereof, those states received five per cent, 
of the proceeds of the sales ; next, that one section in every township, or one 
thirty-sixth part of the whole, was reserved to those states for purposes of educa- 
tion ; and that other liberal grants of land for special and local purposes, were 
made to those states. In addition to all this, the committee recommended, that 
ten per cent, more of the then future proceeds of the sales be granted to the states 
within which they should be made, for purposes of internal improvement. The 
report then proceeds : — 

" 2. The committee have now to proceed to the other branch of the inquiry, 
which they were required to make, that of the expediency of ceding the public 
lands to the several states in which they are situated, on reasonable terms. The 
inquiry comprehends, in its consequences, a cession of the whole public domain 
of the United States, whether lying within or beyond the limits of the present 
states and territories. For, although, in the terms of the inquiry, it is limited to 
.he new states, cessions to them would certainly be followed by similar cessions tc 
other new states, as they may, from time to time, be admitted into the Union. 
Three of the present territories [Michisan, Iowa, and Florida] have nearly at- 
tained to the requisite population entitling them to be received as members of the 
confederacy, and they shortly will be admitted. Congress could not consistently 
avoid ceding to them the public lands within their limits, after having made such 
cessions to the other states. The compact with the state of Ohio formed 



480 MR. clay's public land policy. 

fully to cope with the manufactures of any other country, the pub- 
lic lands will remain a subject of deep and enduring interest. In 
whatever view we contemplate them, there is no question of such 
vast importance. As to their extent, there is public land enough 
to found an empire. Stretching across this immense continent, from 

the model of compacts with all the other new states as they were successively 
admitted. 

" Whether the question of a transfer of the public lands be considered in the 
limited or more extensive view of it which has been stated, it is one of the high- 
est importance, and demanding the most deliberate consideration. From the 
statements founded on official reports, made in the preceding part of this report, 
that the quantity of unsold and unappropriated lands, lying within the limits of 
the new states and territories, is 340,871,753 acres, and the quantity beyond those 
limits, is 750,000,000 of acres, presenting an aggregate of 1,090,871,753 acres. 
It is difficult to conceive a question of greater magnitude than that of relinquish- 
ing this immense amount of national property. Estimating its value according to 
the minimum price, it presents the enormous sum of $1,363,589,691. If it be 
said, that a large portion of it will never command that price, it is to be observed, 
on the other hand, that, as fresh lands are brought into market, and exposed to 
sale at public auction, many of them sell at prices exceeding one dollar and a 
quarter per acre. Supposing the public lands to be worth, on an average, one 
half of the minimum price, they would still present the immense sum of $681,- 
794,845. The least favorable view which can be taken of them, is, that of con- 
sidering them a capital yielding at present an income of three millions of dollars 
annually. Assuming the ordinary rate of six per cent, interest per annum as the 
standard to ascertain the amount of that capital, it would be fifty millions of dol- 
lars. But this income has been progressively increasing. The average increase 
during the six last years has been at the rate of twenty-three per cent, per annum. 
Supposing it to continue in the same ratio, at the end of a little more than four 
years, the income would be doubled, and make the capital one hundred millions 
of dollars. While the pop-dation of the United States increases only three pei 
cent per annum, the increas • of the demand for the public lands is at the rate of 
twenty-three per cent., furnishing another evidence that the progress of emigra- 
tion, and the activity of sales, have not been checked by the price demanded by 
the government. 

" In whatever light, therefore, this great subject is viewed, the transfer of the 
public lands from the whole people of the United States, for whose benefit they 
are now held, to the people inhabiting the new states, must be regarded as the 
most momentous measure ever presented to the consideration of Congress. If 
such a measure could find any justification, it must arise out of some radical and 
incurable defect in the construction of the general government properly to admin- 
ister the public domain. But the existence of any such defect is contradicted by 
the most successful experience. No branch of the public service has evinced 
more system, uniformity, and wisdom, or given more general satisfaction, than that 
of the administration of the public lands. 

" If the proposed cession to the new states were to be made at a fair price, such 
as the general government could obtain from individual purchasers, under the 
present system, there would be no motive for it, unless the new states are more 
competent to dispose of the public lands than the common government. They are 
now sold under one uniform plan, regulated and controlled by a single legislative 
authority, and the practical operation is perfectly understood. If they were 
transferred to the new states, the subsequent disposition would be according to 
aw3 emanating from various legislative sources. Competition would probably 
arise between the new states, in the terms which they would offer to purchasers. 
Each state would be desirous of inviting the greatest number of emigrants, not 
only for the laudable purpose of populating rapidly its own territories, but with a 
view to the acquisition of funds to enable it to fulfil its engagements to the general 
government. Collisions between the states would probably arise, and their inju- 
rious consequences may be imagined. A spirit of hazardous speculation would 
be engendered. Various schemes of the new states would be put afloat to sell or 
divide the public lands. Companies and combinations would be formed in this 
rountrjj if not in foreign r ountries, presenting gigantic and tempting, but delu- 



MR. CLAV'S PUBLIC LAND POLICY. 481 

the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, from the gulf of Mexico to the 
northwestern lakes, the quantity, according to official surveys and 
estimates, amounting to the prodigious sum of one billion and 
eighty millions of acres !" 

• ******# 

sive projects, and the history of legislation, in some of the states of the Union, 
admonishes us, that a too ready ear is sometimes given by a majority in a legis 
lative assembly, to such projects. 

"A decisive objection to such a transfer for a fair equivalent, is, that it would 
establish a new and dangerous relation between the general government and the 
new states. In abolishing the credit which had been allowed to purchasers of 
the public lands prior to the year 1820, Congress was i)rincipally governed by the 
consideration of the inexpediency and hazard of accumulating a large amount of 
debt in the new states, all bordering on each other. Such an accumulation was 
deemed unwise and unsafe. It presented a new bond of interest, of sympathy, 
and of union, partially operating to the possible prejudice of the common bond of 
the whole Union. But that debt was a debt due from individuals, and it was 
attended with this encouraging security, that purchasers, as they successively com- 
pleted the payments for their lands, would naturally be disposed to aid the govern- 
ment in enforcing payment from delinquents. The project which the committee 
are now considering, is, to sell to the states, in their sovereign character, and con- 
sequently to render them public debtors to the general government to an immense 
amount. This would inevitably create among the debtor states a common feelina. 
and a common interest, distinct from the rest of the Union. These states are all 
in the western and southwestern quarter of the Union, remotest from the centre of 
federal power. The debt would be felt as a load, from which they would con- 
stantly be desirous to relieve themselves, and it would operate as a strong temp- 
tation, weakening, if not dangerous to the existing confederacy. The committee 
have the most animating hopes, and the greatest confidence in the strength and 
power and durability of our happy Union, and the attachment and warm affection 
of every member of the confederacy can not be doubted; but we have authority 
higher than human, for the instruction, that it is wise to avoid all temptation. 

"In the state of Illinois, with a population at the last census, of 157,445, there 
are 31,395,969 acres of public land, including that part on which the Indian title 
remains to be extinguished. If we suppose it to be worth only half the minimum 
price, it would amount to $19,622,480. How would that state be able to pay 
fluch an enormous debt ? How could it pay even the annual interest upon it ? 

" Supposing the debtor states to fail to comply with their engagements, in 
what mode could they be enforced by the general government ? In treatie? 
between independent nations, the ultimate remedy is well known. The apprehen- 
sion of an appeal to that remedy, seconding the sense of justice, and the regard 
for character, which prevail among Christian and civilized nations, constitutes, 
generally, adequate security for the performance of national compacts. But this 
last remedy would be totally inadmissible in case of delinquency on ihe part of 
the debtor states. The relations between the general government and the mem- 
bers of the confederacy, are happily those of peace, friendship, and paternity, anJ 
exclude all idea of force and war. Could the judiciary coerce the debtor states ' 
On what could process operate ? Could the property of innocent persons residing 
within the limits of those states, be justly seized by the general government, and 
held responsible for debts contracted by the states themselves in their sovereign 
character ? If a mortgage upon the lands ceded were retained, that mortgage 
would prevent or retard subsequent sales by the states, and if individuals boughi 
subject to the incumbrance, a parental government could never resort to the pain- 
ful measure of disturbing them in their possessions. 

" Delinquency on the part of the debtor states would be inevitable, and there 
would be no effectual remedy for the delinquency. They would come again anu 
again to Congress, soliciting time and indulgence, until, finding the weight of the 
debt intolerable, Congress, wearied by reiterated applications for relief, would finally 
resolve to spunge the debt; or, if Congress attempted to enforce its payment, 
another and a worse alternative would be embraced. 

" If the proposed cession be made for a price merely nominal, it would be con 
trary to the express conditions of the original cessions from primitive states to 



482 MR. clay's public land policy. 

" Whatever may be the fate of the particular proposition now 
under consideration, I sincerely hope that the attention of the na- 
tion may be attracted to this most interesting subject ; that it may 
justly appreciate the value of this immense national property: and 
that, preserving the regulation of it by the vi^ill of the w^hole, for 
the advantage of the whole, it may be transmitted, as a sacred and 
inestimable succession, to posterity, for its benefit and blessing for 
ages to come." 

The historical origin of this report is worthy of notice. Mr. 
Clay being a candidate for the presidency in 1832, it was thought 
by his political opponents, that, by imposing on him the duty of 
making a report on the land question, he would injure his pros- 
pects in the western and new states. They believed, that he could 
not make a report on that subject, consistent with his known prin- 
ciples, without destroying himself as a candidate before the peo- 
ple ; and having a majority in the senate, they conspired to impose 
on him this duty, by referring the subject to the committee on 
manufactures, of which Mr. Clay was chairman. Nothing could 
be more obviously improper, than such a reference, when there 
was a standing committee in the senate on the public lands. Mr. 
Clay and his friends protested against it ; but it was of no avail. 
The subject was imposed upon the committee on manufactures, 
and, being forced into the service, they were obliged to take it up. 
The duty of preparing the report, as was expected and intended, 
devolved on Mr. Clay. Such is its origin. 

The following extract from a private letter to Judge Brooke, 
written at this time, sheds some light on this subject : — 

" Washington, March 28, 1832. 

" My dear sir : You will have seen the disposition made on 

Congress, and contrary to the obligations which the general government stands 
under to the whole people of the United States, arising out of the fact, that the 
acquisitions of Louisiana and Florida, and from Georgia, were obtained at a great 
expense, borne from the common treasure, and incurred for the common benefit. 
Such a gratuitous cession could not be made, without a positive violation of a sol- 
emn trust, and without manifest injustice to the old states. And its inequality 
among the new states would be as marked as its injustice to the old would be in- 
defensible. Thus, Missouri, with a population of 140,455, would acquire 38,291,- 
152 acres; and the state of Ohio, with a population of 935,884, would obtain 
only 5,586,834 acres. Supposing a division of the land among the citizens of 
these two states respectively, the citizen of Ohio would obtain less than six acres 
for his share, and the citizen of Missouri upward of two hundred and seventy- 
two acres as his proportion ! 

" Upon full and mature consideration, the committee have come to the conclu- 
sion, that it is inexpedient, either to reduce the price of the public lands, or to 

cede them to the new states." 

• • • • • • • 

A bill was reported, entitled, " An act to appropriate, for a limited time, the 
proceeds of the sales of the public lands," embracing Mr. Clay's well-known 
views, as developed in this chapter. 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 483 

Thursday last of my resolution respecting the tariff. On that oc- 
casion some developments were made of a scheme which I have 
long since suspected — that certain portions of the south were dis- 
posed to purchase support to the anti-tariff doctrines by a total 
sacrifice of the public lands to states within which they are situ- 
ated ! A more stupendous, and a more flagitious project was 
never conceived ! It will fail in its object ; but it ought to be de- 
nounced. A majority of the senate (composed of all the anti-tariff 
senators, and some of the Jackson tariff senators) referred a reso- 
lution concerning the public lands to the committee on manufac- 
tures ! Can you conceive a more incongruous association of 
subjects ? There were two objects : the first I have suggested ; 
the second was to affect me personally, by placing me in a situa- 
tion in which I must report unfavorably to the western and south- 
western states, which are desirous of possessing themselves of the 
public lands. I think I shall disappoint the design, by presenting 
such views of that great interest as will be sustained by the nation. 
Meantime, I should be glad if you would give some hints to our 

friend , and let him sound the tocsin. In Illinois there are 

about forty millions of acres of public lands, and about one hun- 
dred and fifty or one hundred and sixty thousand people. What 
think you of giving that large amount of lands to this comparatively 
small number of people ? If it were nominally sold to them, 't 
would in the end amount to a mere donation. 

" Truly your friend, 

"H. Clay. 
" The Hon. F. T. Brooke." 

But they who had forced on Mr. Clay the duty of making this 
report, at this critical time, intending it for his political ruin, were 
atounded when it was introduced. They could not complain, 
that he had desired that function. He had protested against it, and 
most reluctantly acquiesced in the decision of the senate. He 
knew their motive, and perhaps thought, that the execution of the 
task would be politically injurious to him. But they who under- 
stand Mr. Clay's character, know very well, that he was never 
known to shrink from a public duty for such a reason. He sat 
himself down to the work, surveyed the field with the object io 
view, collected and collated the facts, and the report is the product 
of his labors on that occasion. Thanks to his enemies. Doubt- 
less the country would have had this poUcy laid out in some othe 
form, by the same hand. It is indeed to be found in Mr. Clay's 
speeches on this subject. But it was better to have it in this form, 
as a permanent public document — being, as it is, a succinct, com- 



-184 MR. clay's public land policy. 

pact, comprehensive, matter-of-fact, unanswerable development of 
the system, done to the hand of all who may have occasion to be- 
come acquainted with it, whether from curiosity, or interest, or the 
practical uses of statesmen. 

The legislatures of six of the new states, Indiana, Illinois, Mis- 
souri, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, had memorialized 
Congress in favor of the policy directly opposed to that advanced 
and advocated by Mr. Clay in this report, that is, to reduce the 
price of the public lands, and cede them to the states in which 
they lie ; and it was confidently expected by those who thrust 
upon I\Ir. Clay this duty, that, in the discharge of it, he would 
render himself obnoxious to those states. But what was their sur- 
prise, and consternation, when they found the report proved, thai 
a new state almost immediately on its organization becomes an old 
state, quo ad hoc, in its interest in the public domain as a common 
stock of the entire Union? Even if one or two of the new states 
at that time might have been allured by the temptation of acquiring 
immediate possession and control of the public lands within their 
own bounds, a second thought, in view of Mr. Clay's report, would 
teach them, that it was even wiser to remain fellow-heirs of the 
magnificent estate of the whole family, than, by snatching their por- 
tions now, be cut off from all the chances of the future. 

Mr. Clay, in his speech on the bill accompanying this report, 
expressed himself on this point as follows : — 

" The equality contended for between all the states, now exists. 
The public lands are now held, and ought to be held and admin- 
istered, for the common benefit of all I hope our fellow-citizens 
of Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri, will reconsider the matter ; that 
they will cease to take counsel from demagogues who would de- 
ceive them, and instil erroneous principles into their ears ; and that 
they will feel and acknowledge that their brethren of Kentucky, and 
of Ohio, and of all the states in the Union, have an equa^ right 
with the citizens of those three states, in the public lands. If the 
possibility of an event so direful as a severance of this Union were 
for a moment contemplated, what would be the probable conse- 
quence of such an unspeakable calamity ? If three confederacia 
were formed out of its fragments, do you imagine that the weste 
confederacy would consent to have the states including the public 
lands hold them exclusively for themselves? Can you imagine 
that the states of Ohio, Kentucky, an-d Tennessee, would quietly 
renounce their right in all the public lands west of them ? No, sir 
No, sir! They would wade to their knees in blood, before thej 
would make such an unjust and ignominious surrender 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 485 

♦ But this pretension, unjust to the old states, unequal as to all, 
would be injurious to the new states themselves, in whose behalf 
it has been put forth, if it were recognised. The interest of the 
new states is not confined to the lands within their limits, but ex- 
tends to the whole billion and eighty millions of acres. Sanction 
the claims, however, and they are cut down and restricted to that 
which is included in their own boundaries. Is it not better for 
Ohio, instead of the five millions and a half, or Indiana, instead 
of the fifteen millions, or even for Illinois, instead of the thirty-one 
or thirty-two millions, or Missouri, instead of the thirty-eight mil- 
lions, within their respective limits, to retain their interest in these 
several quantities, and also to retain their interest, in common with 
the other members of the Union, in the countless millions of acres 
that lie west, or northwest, beyond them ?" 

To the utter disappointment of Mr. Clay's political opponents 
in the senate, contrary most probably to the expectations of his 
own friends, and not unlikely beyond his own hopes, his report 
was a decided triumph. The senate refused to take up the bill 
that was brought in with it, and immediately turned round, and 
recommitted the subject to the committee on public lands, for a 
counter report ! Mr. Clay remonstrated, as justly he might. It 
was an indignity. They had forced him to this task, with the hope 
of destroying him ; and now, finding that they had only injured 
themselves, and apparently laid the foundation of Mr. Clay's for- 
tunes, it behooved them to do all they could to undo Mr. Clay's 
work, and in one month thereafter, an elaborate counter-report 
was submitted to the senate by Mr. King, of Alabama, chairman of 
the committee on public lands ! 

This singular procedure, and its result, were described by Mr. 
Clay, when he brought forward his land bill a second time, in 
1835, as follows : — 

" The affair of the public lands was forced upon me. In the 
session of 1831 and 1832, a motion from a quarter politically 
unfriendly to me, was made to refer it to the committee of manu- 
factures, of which 1 was a member. I strenuously opposed the 
reference. I remonstrated, I protested, I entreated, I implored. It 
was in vain that I insisted that the committee on the public land 
was the regular standing committee to which the reference should 
be made. It was in vain that I contended that the public lands 
and domestic manufactures were subjects absolutely incongruous. 
The unnatural alliance was ordered by the vote of a majority of 
the senate. I felt that a personal embarrassment was intended me. 
I felt that the design was to place in my hands a many-edged 
instrument, which I could not touch without being wounded. 



486 MR. clay's public land policy. 

Nevertheless I subdued all my repugnance, and I engaged assidu- 
ously in the task which had been so unkindly assigned me. This, 
or a similar bill, was the offspring of my deliberations. When 
reported, the report accompanying it was referred by the same 
majority of the senate to the very committee on the public lands to 
which I had unsuccessfully sought to have the subject originally 
assigned, for the avowed purpose of obtaining a counteracting 
report. But, in spite of all opposition, it passed the senate at that 
session. At the next, both houses of Congress." 

It is not averred, that none of the reasoning of this counter 
report is better than the following specimen, adduced as one of 
several, to show " why the price of the public lands should be 
reduced, the sales of them accelerated, and the federal title speed- 
ily extinguished in the new states." Nevertheless, its glaring fal- 
lacy is a tolerably fair illustration of the general argument : — 

" Because [the report says] the sum of four hundred and twen- 
ty-five millions of dollars, proposed to be drawn from the new 
states and territories, by the sale of their soil at one dollar and 
twenty cents an acre, is unconscionable and impracticable — such 
as never can be paid — and the bare attempt to raise which, must 
drain, exhaust, and impoverish those states, and give birth to the 
feelings which a sense of injustice and oppression never fail to 
excite." 

Without noticing the borrowed or fictitious subject of this argu- 
ment, to wit, the four hundred and twenty-five millions of dollars 
proposed to be drawn away from the new states, its fallacy, as will 
be seen, consists in the assumption, that the payments for new and 
wild lands, withdraw so much money from regions where no 
money was ; whereas, the money is withdrawn from other states, 
and other countries, whence the immigrants come. It is these lat- 
ter states and countries, which are impoverished, not only by the 
moneyed capital withdrawn, but by the withdrawal of all the capi- 
tal of labor, which the emigrants carry with them ; and the new 
and wild districts, to which they go, are enriched, first, by the 
amount of the capital of labor introduced by the setders ; next, by 
the money, goods, and chattels, which they have left, after paying 
for their lands ; thirdly, by their share in the common fund, to 
which their payments have contributed ; and lasdy, the immigrants 
themselves have a quid pro quo. It can not but be seen, that an 
argument made up of such reasoning, must be a very frail one. 
Let those who wish to see it demolished in detail, read Mr. Clay's 
speech of June 20, 1832. 



MR. CLAY'S PUBLIC LAND FOLIC Jf. 487 

This counter report received the consideration it deserved. 
Not only was Mr. Clay's report triumphant, but his bill triumphed, 
having twice passed the senate, once at the first session of the 
twenty-second Congress ; again at the second session, by a vote 
of 24 to 20 ; and then it was passed in the house of representa- 
tives, by the strong vote of 96 to 40. It happened, however, that 
the final action of the house on the bill, was not till Saturday, the 
2d of March, the last but one of the constitutional term of that 
Congress, and as Sunday was not a working day, it required the 
immediate attention of the president, to become a law. He 
retained the bill till the opening of the next Congress, and returned 
it with his objections, on which occasion, December 5, 1S33, Mr. 
Clay expressed himself as follows: — 

" This measure had been first introduced into Congress at the 
session before the last, under circumstances which must be within 
the recollection of every member of the senate. Its object was, to 
dispose of the proceeds of the public lands for a limited time. The 
subject had been greatly discussed, not only in Congress, but 
throughout the country. The principles and provisions of the bill 
were well and generally understood. The subject had attracted 
the attention of the chief magistrate himself, and this bill was 
made the subject of commentary in his message at the commence- 
ment of the last session of Congress. It must, therefore, be con- 
xiered as a subject perfectly well understood by the president, 
ibr it was not to be supposed that he would have commented upon 
it, and recommended it to the attention of Congress, if it had not 
been understood. During the last session, this bill, which had 
previously been before the house, was introduced in this body, and 
was passed, and sent to the other house, whence it was returned 
with a slight amendment, taking away the discretion which had 
been vested in the state legislatures as to the disposal of the pro- 
ceeds. This bill, which had been before Congress the session 
before the last, which had passed at the last session, having been 
before the country for a whole year, when it passed the two 
houses, was placed before the executive, with a number of other 
measures, just before the close of the last Congress. As the 
subject had been before the president for consideration so long 
previously to the passage of the hill, and he had reflected upon 
:t, ix was not to have been expected that he would take ad- 
vantage of the shortness of the session to retain the bill until 
this time. Yet such had been the fact, and a proceeding had 
taken place which was unprecedented and alarming, and which 
unless the people of this country were lost to all sense of wha 
was due to the legislative branch of the government, to themse'ves 
and to those principles of liberty which had been transmitted 

Vol. I.— 30 



488- MR. clay's public land policy. 

them from the revolution, they would not tolerate. It was at least 
due to the legislature, that the president should have sent a few 
lines, courteously informing them, that when his own mind was 
mad'; up he would communicate the result. But, without deign- 
ing to make known his intention, or to impart the reasons which 
influenced him, he despotically kept silence, and retained the bill. 
He begged leave to congratulate the senate on the return of the 
bill. The question which now presented itself was, whether the 
bill was dead, in consequence of the non-action of the president, 
or whether it had become an existing law ? He was not now about 
to discuss that question ; but he had felt himself called on to make 
a few observations on the extraordinary course, and to say that 
it was due to Congress, to the people, and to the executive him- 
self, to have informed the last Congress in reference to this sub- 
ject, concerning which he must have made up his mind 

He must repeat, that the withholding of the land bill, at the last 
session, under the circumstances of the case, was a violation of 
the constitution, and disrespectful to the senate 

" It may be true, that there was a great press of business on the 
president on the second of March, and that he may have acted upon 
some ninety or one hundred bills. But this is what occurs with 
every president on the day before the termination of the short session 
of Congress. With most of those bills the president must have been 
CSS acquai."*ed than he was with the land bill. Of some of them 
he probaoiy had never heard at all. Not one of them possessed 
the importance of the land bill. How did it happen that the presi- 
dent could find time to decide on so many new bills, and yet had 
not time to examine and dispose of one which had long been be- 
fore him and the public ; one embracing a subject which he 
thought the union, harmony, and interests of the states required 
should be speedily adjusted; one which he himself had pro- 
nounced his judgment upon at the commencement of the session? 
By withholding the bill, the president took upon himself a respon- 
sibility beyond the exercise of the veto : He deprived Congress 
altogether of its constitutional right to act upon the bill, and to 
pass it, his negative notwithstanding. 

" The president is, by the constitution, secured time to consider 
bills which shall have passed both branches of Congress. But so 
is Congress equally secured the right to act upon bills which they 
have passed, and which the president may have thought proper to 
reject. If he exercises his veto, and returns the bill, two thirds 
may pass it. But if he withholds the bill, it can not become a 
law, even although the two houses should be unanimously in its 
favor. 

•' Mr. Clay denied that the constitution gave to the president ten 
days to consider bills, except at the long session. At that ses- 
sion, the period of its termination is uncertain, and dependent 



MR. CLAY S PUBLIC LAND POLICY. 489 

Upon tne will of Congress. To guard against a sudden adjourn- 
ment, by which the president might be deprived of due time to 
deliberate on an important bill, the constitution provides for ten 
days at that session. But, at the short session, it is not an ad- 
journment but a dissolution of Congress, on the third of March, 
and the day of that dissolution is fixed in the constitution itself, 
and known to all. 

" Mr. Clay contended, therefore, that the act of withholding the 
bill was arbitrary and unconstitutional, by which Congress, and 
the senate especially, in which the bill originated, were deprived 
of their constitutional right of passing on the bill, after the presi- 
dent had exercised his powers. Respect to Congress required of 
che president, if he really had not time to form a judgment on the 
bill, or, having formed it, had not time to lay his reasons before 
*he body, a communication to that effect. But, without conde- 
scending to transmit one word upon the subject to Congress, he 
suffered the session to terminate, and the members to go home 
destitute of all information, until this day, of his intentions." 

[t was believed, that this bill would have passed the twenty- 
second Congress by a vote of two thirds, if it had been returned 
to them under a veto. It only required a change of two votes in 
the senate. 

In December, 1835, soon after the opening of the twenty-fourth 
Congress, Mr. Clay again brought forward his land bill, and the 
following is an extract from his speech on the occasion : — 

" Mr. President : I have ever regarded with feelings of the pro- 
foundest regret, the decision which the president of the United 
States felt himself induced to make on the bill of 1833. If it had 
been his pleasure to approve it, the heads of departments would 
not now be taxing their ingenuity to find out useless objects of 
expenditures, or objects which may be well postponed to a more 
distant day. If the bill had passed, about twenty millions of dol 
lars would have been, during the three last years, in the hands oi 
the several states, applicable by them to the beneficent purposes o*" 
internal improvement, education, or colonization. What immense 
benefits might not have been diffused throughout the land by the 
active employment of that large sum V What new channels of 
commerce and communication might not have been opened? 
What industry stimulated, what labor rewarded ? How many 
youthful minds might have received the blessings of education 
and knowledge, and been rescued from ignorance, vice, and ruin ? 
How many descendants of Africa might have been transported 
from a country where they never can enjoy political or social 
equality, to the native land of their fathers, where no impedimen* 
exists to their attainment of the highest degree of elevation, intel 



490 MR. clay's public land policy. 

lectual, social, and political? Where they might have been suc- 
cessful instruments, in the hands of God, to spread the religion of 
his Son, and to lay the foundations of civil liberty ! 

" Placing this exhaustless fund in the hands of the several mem- 
bers of the confederacy, their common federal head might address 
them in the glowing language of the British bard : — 

' Bid harbors open, public ways extend, 
Bid temples worthier of the God ascend. 
Bid the broad arch the dangerous flood contain, 
The mole projecting break the roaring main. 
Back to his bounds their subject sea command, 
And roll obedient rivers through the land.' " 

The bill passed the senate, with an increased majority over that 
of the twenty-second Congress, it being 25 to 20, and was believed 
to be equally desired by the nation. But the house of represen- 
tatives was at this time so much under executive (General Jack- 
son's) influence, that it was lost there by a vote of 104 to 85. 
From that time to the present, the people have desired it. It has 
ever been a popular measure, as proposed and explained in Mr. 
Clay's report of 1832. When there were only twenty-six states, 
twenty of them, by the action of their respective legislatures, had 
memorialized Congress in favor of the distribution policy, as ad- 
vocated by Mr. Clay. But the monarchical, regal power of the 
veto, has prevented the attainment of the public will. It was 
strangled again by Mr. Tyler in 1842. 

Apart from the political aspects of this controversy, either for 
party purposes or general good, the first question that arises, is, as 
to the power of Congress over the subject. This is determined 
by the following clause in the third section of the fourth article of 
the federal constitution : " The Congress shall have power to dis- 
pose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the 
TERRITORY or Other property belonging to the United States ; 
and nothing in this constitution shall be so construed as to preju- 
dice any claims of the United States, or of any particular state." 
As this power is plenary and unqualified, it requires no comment. 

The next question is one oi judicial right, and may be stated 
aS follows : What were the conditions of the deeds of cession of 
the public domain from the states to the United States ; what were 
the purposes of those acts as understood by the parties ; and what 
practical rule or rules will result from them, for the administration 
of this great estate, and for the disposition of its proceeds ? 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 491 

It should be understood, that while the colonies were parts of 
the British empire, the public lands were chiefly owned, under 
charter rights from the crown, by Massachusetts, Connecticut, 
New York, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, 
while the other of the thirteen original states had no interest in 
them. It will be apparent, however, that the perils, toils, cost of 
blood and treasure, and other sacrifices of the revolutionary strug- 
gle, fell equally upon all the states, while the debts were rapidly 
accumulating, and in the end rose to a great and oppressive mag- 
nitude. It was impossible, in these circumstances, to repress the 
question, whether it was fair, that the states which had no interest 
in the titles of the public lands, should be obliged to fight, shed 
their blood, and pour out their treasures equally, in defence of this 
vast territorial domain, and finally be excluded from all participa- 
tion in the benefits ? More than this, whether they should be left 
in the end, with a debt upon their shoulders, without means or 
power to meet it, while the other states, which would have done 
no more, would have an estate large enough for an empire, and 
valuable beyond estimation ? No one can deny the pertinence of 
such a question. It was unanswerable. 

It is also important to observe, that the original confedera- 
tion of the states, was a mere association of separate sovereign- 
ties, for common good, and for a common end. The states were 
not a nation, in the common sense of the term, till the adoption 
of the constitution. The confederation was capable of dissolution ; 
the Union is not, except by violence. The question about the 
public lands, as it existed among the states, was started, agitated, 
and settled by them, in their capacity and character as confederated 
states, not as integral portions of a republican empire. For a 
right understanding of the case, it is necessary, that this state of 
things should be kept in view. 

Contemporaneously with the agitation of this question among 
the states, the old Congress, for several years, sympathized, and 
formally expressed their views and purposes. To check the prog- 
ress of discontent, and suppress controversy between the parties to 
this question, they had recommended a cession of these territories 
to the United States for common use and benefit, and in October 
1780, " Resolved, that the unappropriated land that may be cedea 
or relinquished to the United States, by any particular state, pur- 
suant to the recommendation of Congress of the 6th of September 
ast, shall be disponed of for the common benefit of the United 



492 MR. CLAY S PUBLIC LAND POLICY. 

States," that is of the confederated states, such being their 
position at the time, before the Union, under the constitution, was 
conceived. The recommendation alluded to and this resolution 
were held out as a lure to the states, and as a security of their 
rights in the public domain. Considering the character of the 
government at that time, under the confederation, it was precisely 
the same as saying to the states, in order to remove all grounds of 
jealousy and concern — You shall in no wise lose your rights in this 
property, as states. It was to rescue the lands from controversy 
between the states, that this arrangement was recommended and 
consummated, and not to invalidate their rights as parties. It is 
obvious, if the states, which owned the lands were unwilling to give 
a part interest in them to the other states, that they would never 
entertain the idea of making over the whole to a third party, and 
all for the benefit of that party. It would be absurd to suppose, 
that such was the case. But the term " United States," at that 
time, was synonymous with confederated states, and that set- 
tles the point. 

It is to be observed, that the states, which owned the public 
lands by charter rights, were slow and reluctant to part with them, 
and it was only a sense of justice to the other states, and of the 
necessities of the country, that finally prevailed. New York came 
first into the arrangement, in 1780. Vugmia, whose domain was 
vast, held the question in suspense, till 17S3, and although the 
resolution of Congress, as above represented, was couched in 
terms expressly to guaranty the ultimate destination of the avails 
or proceeds of the lands to the states, in their state capacity, 
yet, to make the security doubly secure against any possible future 
interpretation of the cession into a quitclaim, the legislature of 
Virginia selected the most explicit terms to guard and defend tnis 
point, in their act of cession, as follows : " That all the lands 
within the territory so ceded, and not reserved, &c., " shall be 
considered a common fund for the use and henejit of such of the 
United [confederated] States as have become, or shall become, mem- 
bers of the confederation, or federal alliance of the said states, Vir- 
ginia inclusive, according to their usual respective 
proportions in the geiieral charge a?id expenditure, and shall be 
faithfully and bona fide disposed of for thcit j)urpose, and 

FOR no other use OR PURPOSE WHATEVER." 

Massachusetts followed in 1784, and having the law of Virginia 
before them, must have intended the same thing. In 1786, Con- 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 493 

iiecticut passed her act of cession " to the United [confederated] 
States, in Congress assembled, for the common use and benefit of 
the said states, Connecticut inclusive^ In 1787, South CaroHna 
ceded her vacant territory " to the United States in Congress as- 
Bembled, ybr Z Ac benefit of said states.''^ In 1789, North Carolina 
"eded in terms as follows : " All the lands intended to be ceded 
by virtue of this act, shall be consid-^ed as a common fund for 
the use and benefit of the United [co: federated] States of America* 
North Carolina inclusive, according to their respective 
AND USUAL proportion in the general charge and expenditure, 
and shall be faithfully disposed of for that purpose, and for 
NO OTHER USE OR PURPOSE WHATEVER." The cession from 
the state of Georgia was made in 1802, the conditions of which 
are as follows : *' That all the lands ceded by this agreement to 
the United States, shall be considered as a common fund, for the 
use and benefit of the United States, Georgia included, and shall 
be faithfully disposed of for that purpose, and for no other use or 
purpose whatei^er^ 

First, it is to be considered, that the deeds of cession originated 
and were matured under the confederation, when the states 
existed under their separate systems of political economy. The 
agitation of the question commenced early in the history of the 
revolutionary war, and the principles of cession were settled before 
1780, in which year the old Congress, as seen, acted formally on 
the subject, first, by recommending this course to the states, and 
next, by adopting a resolution to secure the rights of the states. 
The acts of cession by six of the seven ceding states, bear the fol- 
lowing dates : That of New York, 1780 ; of Virginia, 1783 ; of 
Massachusetts, 1784 ; of Connecticut, 1786 ; of South CaroHna, 
1787 ; of North Carolina, 1789 ; and the constitution was adopted 
m 1789. Thus it appears, that the whole plan was fixed in that 
state of things, which existed under the confedeiation. This is 
an important fact m the question of interpretation, as it goes to 
show in what sense the terms and phraseologies of the deeds of 
[ cession were used. The states at that time had no idea of th 
union, as embodied in the constitution of the United States, and 
as entertained since its adoption ; but they all looked to their sep- 
arate interests as paramount with them to all other considerations. 
In this view, let the terms and phraseologies of the deeds be con- 
sidered : 1. " Shall be considered a common fund for the use and 
benefit of such of the United [confederated] States, as have become. 



494 MR. clay's public land policy. 

or shall become, members of the confederation, ov federal alliance 
of the said states." The words " common funds "" and " such of the 
United States," in connexion with what follows, most clearly con- 
stituted the states, in distinction from the confederation, as the par- 
ties to be benefited by this arrangement. Every one will see, that 
such language was not required in a cession to the nation, for zhe 
use and benefit of the nation, and that it is incredible it should have 
been employed for that object. 2. " Virginia wicZWz;e," "Con- 
necticut inclusive,^'' " North Carolina inclusive,'''' " Georgia inclu- 
ded.'''' This, it will be observed, is a legal technicality, arising 
from the principle of law, that when one party of two or more par- 
ties, makes a conveyance to the others, as in this case, the party 
executing the deed retains no right, but conveys all title, except 
by the introduction of this saving clause, as " Virginia inclushe,'''' 
which leaves Virginia her right, according to the terms specified. 
If the cession had been made for the use and benefit of the United 
States as one nation, Virginia of course would have been included, 
and there would have been no need of this phrase ; but, as it was 
manifestly made for the use and benefit of the states, in their sep- 
arate capacities, it was necessary in law to introduce this phrase, 
to save the right of Virginia, else she would have retained none. 
If there were no other evidence of the intent of this instrument, as 
being for the states, and not for the nation, this alone would be 
conclusive. 3. " According to their usual respective proportions 
in the general charge and expenditure." Here is the rule of dis- 
tribution. It would be strange, indeed, that it should be possible 
to suppose that no distribution was intended, when the rule is 
given! Can anything be more clear? 4. "Shall be faithfully 
and bona fide disposed of for that purpose." "Bona fide," in 
good faith. But what faith is required for a party to manage its 
own for itself^ If the public domain is the property of the United 
States as a nation, there is no faith with the states concerned in its 
administration. 5. " And for no o/Aer use or purpose whatsoever.' 
If these lands were not given in trust for the use and benefit of the 
states as such, then the contracting parties are chargeable with the 
absurdity of agreeing, that they shall not be disposed of for the 
use and benefit of foreign powers ! Was there any apprehension 
of that ? 

With these express and explained, conditions (it is remarkable 
that they were explained by expletive phraseology), the general 
government accepted the trust, and became a party to the covenan! 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 495 

It was to settle a most serious difference, an alarming controversy 
among the states — a controversy which had well nigh sacrificed 
independence, and which, if continued, would have rendered in- 
dependence of little avail. It was a great compromise, such as has 
frequently characterized the history of the country in critical emer- 
gencies. But the states took care not to surrender their rights. 

It is manifest from these facts and terms, that the articles of 
cession were deeds of trust. In all cases of trust, the trustee 
is not proprietor of that which is put into his hands, but an agent 
bound by the instructions of the instrument that invests him with 
his functions. This is a principle which is perfectly understood, 
because it is one constantly practised in society, in the administra- 
tion of common law and statute regulations. In the case of Jack- 
son vs. Clark, supreme court, United States, 1 Peters, 635, Chief- 
Justice Marshall, after having cited the terms and conditions of the 
Virginia cession, says : " The government of the United States, 
then, received this territory in trust, not only for the Virginia 
troops on the continental establishment, but also for the use and 
benefit of the members of the confederation : and this trust 
is to be executed, by a faithful and bona fide disposition of the 
land for that purpose. We can not," says the chief-justice, "take 
a retrospective view of the then situation of the United States, 
without perceiving the importance which must have been attached 
to this part of the trust," &c. Throughout his argument, in 
this decision, the chief-justice uniformly calls these deeds of cession 
*' A trust ;" and there is probably no man who would presume to 
call this authority in question. 

In 1895, the Hon. Rufus King, of New York, introduced a 
resolution into the senate of the United States, having in view the 
appropriation of the proceeds of the public lands, by the states, 
to the emancipation and colonization of slaves, with the consent 
of parties, which began thus : " Resolved, That as soon as the por- 
tion of the existing funded debt of the United States, for the pay- 
ment of which the public land is pledged, shall have been paid 
off," &c. Of this resolution, Chief-Justice Marshall, in a letter 
of December 14, 1831, to the Rev. R. R. Gurley, secretary of 
the American Colonization Society, says : " I have always thought, 
and still tlvok, that the proposition made by Mr. King, in the sen- 
ate, is the most unexceptionable," &c. This term, "unex- 
ceptionable," 'v is supposed, refers to the right of the states to 



4:96 MR. clay's public land polict. 

the proceeds of the public lands, as the recognised ground of Mr. 
King's resolution. 

Mr. Madison, in a letter to the same gentleman, on the same 
subject, December 29, 1831, says : " My thoughts and hopes [for 
the aid of colonization] have long been turned to the rich fund 
presented in the western lands of the nation, which will soon e7itirely 
cease to be under a fi.bt>g-e for another object.^' General Jackson, 
in his message of December, 1832, says : " As the lands may now 
be considered as relieved from the pledge, the object for which 
they were ceded having been accomplished," &c. 

These several authorities, in view of the language of the deeds 
of cession, will doubdess be regarded as sufficient to establish the 

" TRUST. ' 

It is al'iO to be observed, that the principle of distribution is 
recognised in this trust : " According to their usual re- 
spective proportions in the general charge and ex- 
penditure." Here, as will be seen, is at the same time the 
principle and the rule. That such was the understanding of 
the conpact between the states on one side and the United States 
on the other, is evident, first from the fact that the deeds of ces- 
sion w«jre familiar to all the parties before they were finally ratified, 
and next from the fact, that the United States accepted the trust 
on this condition, and with these instructions. If there had been 
nothing else, either in the history of the time, or in the deeds of 
conveyance, to settle and determine the principle of distribution, 
this alone would fix it. But it appears, that these cessions were 
made under the confederation, as the date and terms of them 
show, when each state looked after its own interests with a jealous 
eye. Hence the reason, why these deeds are so carefully guarded 
against acts of usurpation and fraud on the part of the general 
government, which, it was justly apprehended, might be commit- 
ted on this immense estate. No one can read the history of that 
time and these documents, and not be convinced, that such was 
their aim ; and if it was, and if it was so understood by all the 
parties, that is enough. 

\s all the states, in their united capacity, had fought the bat 
ties of the revolution, and as one of the great advantages of inde 
pendence acquired, would be the possession of the weal ' of the 
public lands, it was only fair, that the states should be interested 
in these lands, " according to their usual respective proportions in 

■• general charge and expenditure." After long delai^ii ^""il vfhh 



MR. clay's public LAND POMCT. 497 

great difficulty, this question was finally and equitably adjusted, 
and the general government was made the trustee of the public 
domain, for and in behalf of the parties, proprietors, that is the 
STATES, as shown. But both the nation and the states were left 
under the burden of heavy debts at the close of the war. In 
1790, with a population of about 3,000,000, and a gross national 
revenue of only $2,382,617, the debts of the states were over 
$20,000,000, and those of the United States, $56,000,000. (See 
house document No. 296, 3d session, 27th Congress, page 470.) 
As the general government had in charge the public lands, the 
property of the states, as security, it was" required by the states, 
that the United States should assume the state debts, chiefly in- 
curred by the war, which was done in 1790, as follows : For New 
Hampshire, $300,000 ; for Massachusetts, $4,000,000 ; for Rhode 
Island, $200,000 ; for Connecticut, $1,600,000 ; for New York, 
$1,200,000; for New Jersey, $800,000; for Pennsylvania, 
$2,200,000 ; for Delaware, $200,000 ; for Maryland, $800,000 ; 
for Virginia, $3,500,000 ; for North Carolina, $2,400,000 ; for 
South Carolina, $4,000,000 ; for Georgia, $300,000. (See doc- 
ument as above.) 

To show the grounds of this assumption, and the consideration 
Held in charge therefor, it is only necessary to cite the 22d section 
of the ACT, as follows : " Ayid be it further enacted, That the pro- 
ceeds of the sales, which shall be made of lands in the western ter- 
ritory, now belonging, or that may hereafter belong, to the United 
States, shall be, and are hereby, appropriated toward sinking or 
discharging the debts, for the payment whereof the United States 
now are, or by virtue of this act, may be, holden, and shall be 
applied solely to that use, until the said debts shall be fully satis- 
fied-'' 

Here is a distinct recognition of the " trust," and a willing 
discharge of its obligations, out of its avails, or holding its avails 
in mortgage. As this debt could not be immediately paid, but 
must be necessarily funded, the transaction was in effect and sim- 
ply a loan of the credit of the United States to the states, for their 
relief, the former holding the property of the latter as security, and 
being at the same time the trustee and agent of that property. It 
is called assumption. But so far from being a gratuitous assump- 
tion, it was a fair commercial transaction — a bargain to 'pay, for a 
valuable consideration — in this case, ^full and safe consideration. 
The gratuity was rather from the states to the United States, in 



498 MR. clay's public land policy. 

consenting to mortgage their property, to pay debts which had been 
contracted for the party that was made the agent and trustee of 
the public domain, if, indeed, it is proper to erect two such parties 
in the case. But, in many important respects, regarding public 
policy, the states are merged in the United States, as parts of a 
whole, and the interests of the former can not be easily separated 
from those of the latter, nor those of the latter from those of the 
former. The states were magnanimous, and consulted the gen- 
eral welfare, in putting the public domain in charge of the United 
States, when the country was in need ; and for these reasons of a 
generous and noble character, they were and are entitled to equally 
generous, certainly io fair treatment from the other side. 

The articles of confederation proved totally inadequate for the 
necessities of the country, especially in regard to the power of 
raising revenue, which is the life of any government. With a 
public debt of nearly eighty millions, and a revenue of less than 
two millions and a half, what was to be done ? It was in these 
straits that the reorganization of the general government was con- 
ceived, and the constitution of the United States was adopted, to 
get out of them. In the consummation of this great work, the 
states were called upon to sacrifice all their power of raising rev- 
enue by imposts, and to fall back on their internal resources and 
direct taxation, for all the necessities of their respective common- 
wealths. It was a great demand, certainly ; but they generously 
made the sacrifice, for the general good, and deprived themselves 
for ever of this important, it might be called indispensable power 
of political sovereignties. Had they not known, that the public 
lands were theirs, subject only to the debts of the United States 
then existing, would they, coidd they, in safety and common pru- 
dence, have done this ? But it was done — done in good faith — 
done for the public weal, from the most patriotic motives, and the 
states were left to get along as they could, till the lien of the pub- 
lic debt on the public lands should be worked off through the 
agency of the general government. Give back to the states this 
power of raising revenue by imposts, which was so nobly resigned 
by them to the United States, and Pennsylvania, with the customs 
of Philadelphia, and of her other entrepots, in her hand, might 
laugh at her debt o^ forty millions. Every indebted state of the 
Union could relieve itself at once, and the non-indebted states 
might enter on magnificent schemes of internal improvement. 
But what would become of the United States ? The Union would 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 499 

be dissolved, because it could not subsist without this power. The 
states might justly claim a co?isideratio?i for the resignation of it ; 
Dut they modestly ask only that which was their own, and is their 
own. 

Patiently the states waited for the liquidation of the public debt, 
when, in 1812, while the debt was yet considerable, the nation 
was overtaken with the second war with Great Britain, and came 
out of it with a debt of $168,000,000. Though it might be a 
question, whether the public lands were liable for this new debt, 
still the states allowed the proceeds of their own property to be 
applied to its extinguishment, and it was not till 1836, that the 
first dividend was awarded in the shape of a dcposite of surplus 
revenue from the national treasury, the states being held liable to 
treasury warrants at any time for its repayment ! 

It will be found by an examination of the journals of the old 
Congress, while the deeds of cession of the public lands from the 
states were going on, that the lands were not looked to as a source 
of revenue for the ordinary purposes of the government, but that 
the most strenuous efforts were made to mature and establish a 
revenue system by imposts, adequate, not only for current ex- 
penses, but to pay the interest and principal of the public debt. 
(See House Document 296, 3d session, 27th Congress, p. 177, 
and onward.) These efforts were continued, till the consumma- 
tion of the plan in the adoption of the constitution, the powers of 
which were supposed and intended to answer this purpose. They 
are doubtless ample. Nothing is said, in this early history of the 
government — burdened as it was with debt, slender as was its rev- 
enue — of reliance on the public lands to answer the permanent 
necessities of the federal authorities. This negative evidence 
shows the true position which the public lands occupied in the 
public mind of that period — that they were not regarded as the 
property of the nation, and could never be legitimately relied upon 
for the ordinary purposes of federal revenue. 

General Jackson, in his first message to Congress, 1829, after 
alluding to the different opinions on internal improvement by th 
general government, but acknowledging its importance, says : — 

" To avoid these evils, it appears to me, that the most safe, 
just, and federal disposition which could be made of the surplus 
revenue, would be its apportionment among the several states, 
according to their ratio of representation." 



500 MR. clay's public land policy. 

In his annual message of 1830, speaking of internal improve- 
ment, and of distributing surplus funds among the states for that 
object, he says : — 

" That the plan under consideration would derive important 
advantages from its certainty, and that the moneys set apart for 
these purposes would be more judiciously applied, and econom- 
ically expended, under the direction of the state legislatures, in 
which every part of each state is immediately represented, can not, 
I think, be doubted." Again : " Each state would receive its 
quota of the national revenue from a fixed principle, as a matter 
of RIGHT, and from a fund to which it had itself contributed its 
fair proportion J*^ 

In the message of December, 1832, he says: — 
"Among the interests which merit the consideration of Con- 
gress, after the payment of the public debt, one of the most im- 
portant, in my view, is that of the public lands. Previous to the 
formation of our present constitution, it was recommended by 
Congress, that a portion of the waste land ow?ied by the states, 
should be ceded to the United States, for the purposes of general 
harmony, and as a fund to meet the expenses of the ivar. The rec- 
ommendation was adopted, and at different periods of time, the 
states of Massachusetts, New York, Virginia, North and South 
Carolina, and Georgia, granted their vacant soil for the uses for 
which they had been asked. As the la7ids may now be considered as 
relieved from this pledge, the object for which they were ceded 
having been accomplished, it is in the discretion of Congress to dis- 
pose of them in such way as best to conduce to the quiet, har- 
mony, and general interest of the American people It 

seems to me to be our true policy, that the public lands shall 
cease, as soon as practicable, to be a source of revenue." 

General Jackson has evidently hit the main and most important 
historical points in the above cited passages, although he may have 
avoided the conclusion to which they tend. Inadvertently, or 
otherwise, he has, with equal simplicity and truth, recognised the 
facts, that these lands were ''owned by the states," when the ces- 
sion was proposed by the United States; that the object of the 
recommendation was "for general harmony, and as a fund to meet 
the expenses of the war;" that the cessions were made "for the 
uses for which they had been asked;" that a time had arrived, 
when these lands were "relieved from the pledge" of cession, 
"the object for which they were ceded having been accomplished;''^ 
that the states would receive their respective "quotas of national 
revenue, as a matter of right," &c. It was difficult to go into 



MR. clay's public LAND POLICY. 



501 



.his subject historically, and not bring out the truth — difficult not 
to have some sound reflections upon it, if it were touched at all. 

The tables in the note,* exhibit, in a bird's-eye view, certain 
contingent operations and results of Mr. Clay's public land policy, 
of an instructive and practical character. The introduction to the 
ables exhibits the quantity of unsold lands in 1843, from an official 
statement, being 1,042,731,765 acres, which, at the price fixed 
by law, would amount to $1,303,414,706. Table 1 exhibits 
the prospective, not present, value of the public domain, appor- 
tioned to the states and territories, on the basis of federal repre- 
sentation. The aggregate value will of course be permanently 

• The public lands unsold on the 31st of October, 1843, as certified by the com- 
missioner of the general land office (see house document 296, 3d session, 27th 
Congress), were 1,042,731,765 acres, which, at the minimum price fixed by law, 
would amount to $1,303,414,706; or one billion, three hundred and three millions, 
four hundred and fourteen thousand, seven hundred and six dollars. The prospec- 
tive value, at this price, apportioned to the several states and territories, accord- 
ing to their federal representation, is exhibited in the following table : — 



(1 
Maine will be entitled to. . .$42,045,635 | 

New Hampshire 28,030,423 t 

Matssachusetts 56,060,847 

Rhode Island 18,686,949 i 

Connecticut 28,030,423 

Vermont 28,030,423 

New York 168, 1 82,542 

New Jersey 32,702,161 

Pennsylvania 121,465,169 

Delaware 14,015,21 1 

Maryland 37,373,898 

Virginia 79,419,534 

North Carolina 51,389,110 

South Carolina 42,045,635 

Georgia 46,717,372 



.) 

Kentucky $56,060,847 

Tennessee 60,732,584 

Ohio 107,449,957 

Louisiana 28,030,423 

Indiana 56,060,847 

Mississippi 28,030,423 

Illinois 42,045,635 

Alabama 42,045,635 

Missouri 32,702,161 

Arkansas 14,015,21 1 

Michigan. 23,358,686 

Florida 4,671,737 

Wisconsin Territory 4,67 1 ,737 

Iowa « 4,671,737 

District of Columbia 4,671,737 



(2.) 

The following table is from the National Intelligencer, September 24, 1844, show- 
ing the number of acres of the public lands now subject to private entry, to the 
proceeds of which, when sold, each state and territory would be entitled, according 
to the principles of the distribution law of 1841 : — 



Maine Acres 3,945,258 

New Hampshire 2,237,204 

Massachusetts 5,800,023 

Rhode Island 855,648 

Connecticut 2,437,386 

Vermont 2,295,393 

New York 19,096,907 

New Jersey 2,932,931 

Pennsylvania 13,554,675 

Delaware 605,745 

Maryland 3,413,224 

Virginia 8^335,639 

North Carolina 5,150,541 

South Carolina 3,644,840 

Georgia 4,552,393 



Alabama Acrts 5,557,372 

Mississippi 3,499,57 1 

Louisiana 3,541,002 

Tennessee 5,943,801 

Kentucky 5,558,068 

Ohio 12,031,512 

Indiana 5,852,488 

Illinois 5,442,867 

Missouri 4,883,63 1 

Arkansas 2,504,472 

Michigan 3,118,878 

Florida 347,437 

Wisconsin Territory 243,268 

Iowa « 338,914 

District of Columbia 328,9 12 



502 MR clay's public land policy. 

uniform under a given policy ; but the comparative interest of the 
states will always correspond with the federal representation, as 
determined by every new census. The main purpose of this table 
is to demonstrate the joint inheritance of the whole family of states 
in parts, as it lies in abeyance to them, under a given comparative 
population, and to show what it is likely to yield under the system 
of policy proposed by Mr. Clay. It may be less or more in its 
actual productiveness, according as this great estate may be well 
or ill administered, and according as the country shall prosper. It 
is manifestly the richest inheritance that a nation was evc^ born to. 

(3.) 

The following table, transmitted to the senate, in 1839, by the secretary of 
the treasury, exhibits the proportion of the net proceeds of the sale of the pub- 
lic lands, which each state would have received, up to and including the 30th of 
September, 1838, under the bill of 1833, entitled, " An act to appropriate, for a lim- 
ited time, the proceeds of the sales of the public lands of the United States, and for 
granting lands to certain states;" the expenses incident to the sale of the lands, 
and the amount of the two, three, and five per cent, funds, accruing to the several 
states under compacts entered into with them on their admission into the Union, 
being first deducted : — 

Twelve and a half per ct. on Total amount of 
the net proceeds. the net proceeds 

Ohio $554,182 $4,557,932 

Indiana 1,182,404 2,646,744 

niinois 1,126,724 1,797,554 

Missouri 559,793 1,116,530 

Alabama 845,334 1,965,934 

Mississippi 1,201,198 1,672,294 

Louisiana 248,319 982,149 

Michigan 401,016 443,196 

Arkansas 96,818 134,905 

Maine 1,705,206 

New Hampshire 1,149,714 

Massachusetts 2,605,734 

Rhode Island 414,897 

Connecticut 1,270,683 

Vermont 1,198,058 

New York 8,190,102 

New Jersey 1,365,691 

Pennsylvania 5,754,697 

Delaware 322,003 

Maryland 1,732,475 

Virginia = 4,369,167 

North Carolina 2,730,979 

South Carolina 1,942,432 

Georgia 1,834,794 

Tennessee 2,669,148 

Kentucky 2,654,502 

$6,215,788 $57,227,520 



Twelve and a half per cent, on the net proceeds to the states in 

which the public lands are situated $6,215,788 

Net proceeds that would have been divided among all the states.. .. 51,011,732 

Total $57,227,520 



ME clay's public LAND POLICY 503 

The political problem to be solved, is, whether it shall be squan- 
dered by the profligacy of demagogues, and scattered to the winds 
of heaven, without yielding anything to the rightful heirs; or 
whether it shall be faithfully administered for the benefit of the 
members of the family? 

Table 2 exhibits a territorial division and hypothetical dis- 
tribution of that part of the public domain, lying within the con- 
stituted states and territories, which has been actually surveyed 
and booked in the public land offices, is exposed for sale, and the 
avails of which, when sold, would have fallen to the states and ter- 
ritories, in the respective proportions there represented, under the 
operation of the land bill of 1841, if it had not been quashed by 
Mr. Tyler's veto of the first tariff bill of 1842. 

Table 3 is an official report of great interest, as it shows, with 
minute accuracy, from the actual income of the public land office, 
what each state would have been entitled to, under the operation 
of Mr. Clay's land bill of 1833, which was pocketed and strangled 
by General Jackson. 

The National Intelligencer, of September 24, 1844, from which 
table number 2 is taken, exhibits a variety of statistical displays, 
enlarging the bounds, and multiplying the details of information on 
this subject, well worthy of attention. The calculations are ex- 
tended from states to counties, and from counties to individual per- 
sons. For example, the benefit of Mr. Clay's bill of 1833, to 
every free white male of 20 years old and upward, in the state of 
Pennsylvania, for the term of six years, would have been 7ii?ieteen 
dollars ; and in the state of Maryland, twenty-four dollars. What 
was lost to each state, in two years, by Mr. Tyler's veto of 1842, 
is also presented. But, for the purposes of this work, the author 
has thought, that the tables in the note are sufficient, and that the 
radiations of light beaming out from these three points, may be 
more effective than multiplied statements, which tend to confusion, 
as out of these materials, every one, by a little pains, can find such 
details as he may want ; and they who do not want them, would 
only be embarrassed, if they were given. 

Some practical reflections of great interest and moment belong 
to this place. It is evident, that, if Mr. Clay's land policy had 
been adopted, the credit of the states would never have suffered ; 
and thai, if it should now be adopted, the credit of the states would 
be instantly revived : first, because the inheritance thus settled on 

Vol. L— 31 



504 



MR. CLAY S PUBLIC LAND POLICY. 



the members of the family, is ample for any necessary credit; 
and next, because it would show to the world, that the head of this 
family is kind to the members, and disposed to respect their ckims 
to this inheritance. Nothing else is required for the instantaneous, 
full, and complete restoration of the credit of the states, and the 
honor of the country. Capitalists do not want the money ; it is 
their interest and business to loan it ; they only want to know 
that it is safe, and that they can depend on the regular payment 
of interest. It is therefore equally evident — a necessary deduc- 
tion — that, on the rejection of Mr. Clay's public land policy, rests 
all the responsibility of the loss of credit to the states, of repudia- 
tion, and of all the public calamities, and public dishonor, which 
have resulted from such a state of things. Doubtless, there have 
been collateral and kindred causes, which, in the proper place, will 
deserve attention. But this cause alone was adequate to the com- 
prehensive and disastrous result. In the absence of this cause, or 
in the prevalence of Mr. Clay's policy, such a result could never 
have transpired. 

Since the official statement of the debts of the states, exhibited 
below,* was communicated to Congress, some of them have been 
more correctly ascertained, some have been augmented, and some 
diminished ; but the common estimate of the aggregate is still 
about two hundred millions of dollars. These debts were con- 
tracted chiefly for internal improvements, undertaken when the 
credit of the country, and of the states, was good, under a system 
of encouragement — rather a fit, for it did not last long — held 
out by the administration of General Jackson, arising partly from 
an order to loan the public deposites, and partly from an un- 
derstanding that the general government would favor a policy 
for the distribution of the surplus funds of the national treasury 

• DEBTS OF THE STATES. 

The following table of state debts, is from a report of the secretary of the 
treasury to Congress, 1842, compiled from official returns he had been instructed 
to invite : — 

Maine (indebted) $1,734,861 , Florida $4,000,000 

Tennessee 3,189,166 

Kentucky 3,085,500 

Michigan 5,611,000 

Ohio 10,924, 123 

Indiana 12,751,000 

Illinois 13,527,292 

Missouri 842,261 

District of Columbia 1,316,030 



Massachusetts 5,424,137 

Pennsylvania 36,336,044 

New York 21,797,267 

Maryland 15,214,761 

Virginia 6,994,307 

South Carolina 5,691,234 

Georgia 1,309,750 

Alabama 15,400,060 

Louisiana 23,985.000 

Mississippi 7,000,000 

Arkansas 2,67t',000 



To these may be added — 
North Carolina 1,050,000 



MR. CLAY S PUBLIC LAND POLICY. 505 

among the states. Many of these improvements are a full quid 
•pro quo for the debts. Those of New York are sufficiently valu- 
able for a liquidation of the costs ; those of Pennsylvania, properly 
managed, will pay part of the interest, and the benefit to the state 
will more than make up the complement of interest, so that, under 
a proper administration, they ought to be regarded as good stock. 
The state stocks of Ohio are undoubtedly good ; those of Mary- 
land, in the prospect of completing the canal to Cumberland, will 
also be good. There are few of the states, if any, which could 
not preserve the credit of their stocks with tolerable ease, apart 
from the baleful influence of party politics, which too often, almost 
universally, make a hobby of a financial policy, and keep public 
credit in a state of constant fluctuation. 

The adoption of Mr. Clay's land policy, as a permanent system, 
would rescue and shield the states from these hazards. By that 
the public domain would be pledged for the state debts, the quota 
of each state for its own debts severally so long and so far as there 
should be any ; or such a pledge might be made a condition of 
distribution. It would at least be naturally adopted as the policy 
of each state, if such a condition should be deemed inconsistent 
with sovereignty. The public lands, worth a billion of money, 
are an abundant security for two hundred millions. The history of 
the Commonwealth Bank of Kentucky, the credit of which rested 
chiefly on the public lands of the states, shows that such a basis 
can not easily be shaken. Not that lands are a proper foundation 
for banking. The operation and result in Kentucky, prove that 
they are not. But they are a firm basis of credit, and it was that 
alone, apparently, which saved the Commonwealth Bank of Ken- 
tucky from a total wreck, and enabled it to wind up with a paper 
nearly or quite at par, though it had been depressed some fifty per 
ent. by a panic. 

The evidence given in this chapter of the judicial right of the 
states to the avails of the public lands, must be left to speak for 
itself. That they were never designed for the ordinary purposes 
of national revenue, seems to be admitted on all sides. Such is 
the undoubted import of the passages before cited from General 
Jackson's messages, and he appears to have been in favor of dis- 
tribution. Mr. Van Buren also, in 1826, expressed himself in 
favor of distribution : " He believed if these lands were disposed 
of at once to the several states, it would be satisfactory to all." 
In his letter to Sherrod Williams, 1836, notwithstanding he affected 



506 MR. clay's public land policy. 

opposition to a syeci/ic plan of distribution, he said : " I need only 
observe, that I regard the public domain as a trust fund, belong- 
ing to ALL the states, to be disposed of for their common benefit." 
This expression is part of a quotation from a former letter to his 
constituents in the state of New York, without repudiation in this 
place — of course with sanction by its iteration. These authorities 
ought reasonably to have weight with all the supporters of these 
two men while at the head of the government. The pri7icir>le of 
distribution seems to have been clearly advocated by them, and 
the first act of distribution was passed in the last year of General 
Jackson's administration, and sanctioned by his official signature. 

The difficulty on this subject between the two great parties of 
the country, seems to have been in their antagonistical views regard- 
ing the protective policy. The advocates of free trade go for de- 
priving the states of the proceeds of the public lands, because, 
while flowing into the national treasury, and employed for federal 
objects, they constitute a considerable fraction of the federal ex- 
penditures, and consequently relieve a revenue tariff so far as it is 
protective, and diminish the amount of protection. Admitting that 
the advocates of free trade are right in their theory, they are unjust 
in practice, when, to accomplish their end, they deprive the states 
of their right to the proceeds of the public lands. They want these 
proceeds for federal purposes, in order to reduce and keep down 
a protective tariff; whereas, their opponents not only assert the 
right of the states to these proceeds, but they maintain the right 
of the people to that amount of protection, which alone would 
raise a sufficient revenue for the ordinary purposes of the general 
government. There can be no question as to the right of the 
states to the proceeds of the lands ; and admitting that the object 
of the free trade party is legitimate, it can not be right to do a 
wrong, to accomplish that object. But there is a question as to 
the justice of the free-trade system, and its opponents believe it is 
unjust in its operations on the people of the country — that the 
people are entitled to protection. If this difficulty were out of the 
way, there would be no controversy about the public lands. It all 
turns on the discordant views about a protective policy. One party 
will not consent to distribution, although it is proved to be a right, 
because it tends to increase protection. The other party claim 
distribution as a right, and protection as a right. 



POLITICAL CHARACTEE OF MR. CLAY's TIMES. 507 



CHAPTER XXI. 

Political Chabacter of Mr.Clay's Times.— Mr. Clay a Jeffersoniaa Democrat- 
Democratic and Regal Power of the Constitution. — Influence of Names in Poli- 
tics. — The Government of the United States a Democracy. — Who are the True 
Democrats. — The effect of the Alien and Sedition Laws in rousing the Democ- 
racy.— Mr. Clay's Claims to Democracy.— His Denial of Democracy to his Op- 
ponents. — Jefferson not the Father of Democracy. — Democracy the Genius of 
the American People.— Reign of Democracy from Jefferson to J. Q. Adams, 
inclusive. — Regal Power rose with General Jackson. — Mr. Clay's Great Strug- 
gles against Regal Power, and for the Defence of Democracy. 

Mr. Clay opened his political career in the ascendency of the 
star of Thomas Jefferson, and was a Jeffersonian democrat ; 
and the most remarkable feature of the political character of the 
times in which he has lived, has been a struggle between the 
democratic and regal powers of the constitution. That there are 
two such elements in the constitution of the United States, it is not 
supposed there can be any question. But to avoid misapprehension, 
it is here stated, that, by the democratic power of the constitution, 
is meant popular influence, and by the regal power, executive in- 
fluence. The measure of the former is that amount of influence 
which the constitution intended should be wielded by the legisla- 
tive branch of the government, as the immediate and direct repre- 
sentative of the people, speaking and acting in their behalf; and 
the measure of the latter is that power which the constitution has 
given to the president. 

As NAMES in politics are substantive powers, in their social 
and moral influence, it is of no small importance that they should 
be properly applied. The question has been often mooted, and 
among grammarians will probably be always debatable, whether 
the government of the United States is a democracy ? With 
those who choose to make it a question, it should be regarded as 
merely a grammatical one ; but for the practical objects of poli- 
ticians and statesmen, the gravity of the issues depending, requires, 
that they should take far higher ground, and not hold this question 



508 POLITICAL CHARACTEU OF 

in debate for a moment. If it be allowed — as doubtless it will be 
— that the design of the framers of the federal and of the state 
constitutions, was, that the will of the people should prevail ; and 
if it be an admitted principle, that all the powers of government 
originate with the people, and revert to them in the provisions of 
fundamental law ; then the government of the United States, and 
of the states respectively, is a democracy, in the most common, 
and in the historical, sense of the term. For all practical pur- 
poses, this question can not profitably be extended further, than to 
arrive at the distinction between monarchy and democracy — be- 
tween a government, which in its origin and structure, is independ- 
ent of the people, and one which is dependent upon them. That 
being settled, it is also determined, whether any particular govern- 
ment be democratic or not. The government of the United States, 
by this rule, is a democracy. Notwithstanding, it is not the less 
true, that there is a regal power in the constitution, than that there 
is a democratic power. Regal power is essential to all govern- 
ments wielded by a head, or chief magistrate. In other words, the 
proposition is a mere truism. 

The rise, progress, and triumph of JefFersonian democracy, de- 
rived its impulse and vitality immediately from the alien and sedi- 
tion laws of 1799 ; though the democratic feeling, which started 
so suddenly into powerful activity, and so soon wielded an ener- 
getic sway over the mind of the country, was pre-existent, and only 
waited to be invoked. It is the prevalent feeling of the American 
people, and always has been, since the achievement of their inde- 
pendence. It is even older than that, and was the pEirent of inde- 
pendence. 

A charitable view of the designs of the alien and sedition laws, 
founded on the history which suggested and prompted them, would 
probably allow, that they were misinterpreted by opponents. But 
they were alarming, and in the hands of worse men than those who 
originated and enacted them, might have proved destructive of 
freedom. The design of the government of the United States was 
not to bestow dangerous powers, and these were of that class. 
The feeling of the country took alarm ; they were denounced ; 
Thomas Jefferson was at the head of the opposition ; and Henry 
Clay, in the west, then a youth of twenty-two or three, rose on the 
tide, and spread his sails to the breeze, for the first time, on the 
ocean of political strife, except, perhaps, he had commenced his 
labors in the cause of emancipation for the prospective revision of 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 509 

the constitution of Kentucky. But he thundered forth, in eloquent 
and indignant tones, his denunciations of the aUen and sedition 
laws, and was the leading democrat of tlie west, in that sudden 
and energetic popular movement, which ushered in the adminis- 
tration of Thomas Jefferson. 

From that day to this, it will be found, not only that Mr. Clay 
has been a democrat of the same school, but that he has claimed 
it for himself. In a speech delivered at Lexington, May 16, 1829, 
after Mr. Clay's retirement from the department of state, under 
Mr. Adams, he says : '" In a republic all power and authority, and 
all public offices and honors, emanate from the people, and are 
exercised and held for their benefit. In a monarchy, all power and 
authority, all offices and honors, proceed from the monarch. His 
interests, his caprices, and his passions, influence and control the 
destinies of the kingdom. In a republic, the people are everything, 
and a particular individual nothing. In a monarchy, the monarch 
IS everything, and the people nothing.'jf 

While the sub-treasury bill was under debate in the senate, Mr. 
Calhoun cast some reflection on Mr. Clay, as having on his side 
members of the federal party. 

" Sir," said Mr. Clay, addressing the president of that body, 
" I am ready to go into an examination with the honorable sena- 
tor at any time, and then we shall see if there be not more mem- 
bers of that same old federal party among those whom the senator 
has recently joined, than on our side of the house. The plain 
truth is, that it is the old federal party mith whom he is now acting. 
For all the former grounds of difference, which distinguished that 
party, and were the subjects of contention between them and the 
republicans, have ceased, from lapse of time and change of circum- 
stances, with the exception of onb, ufid that is the maintenance and 
increase of executive power. This was a leading policy of the federal 
party. A strong, powerful, and energetic executive, was its favorite 
tenet. ... I can tell the gentleman, that he will find the true old 
democratic party, who were for resisting the encroachments of 
power, and limiting executive patronage, on our side of the senate, 
and not with his new allies, the Jackson-Van Buren democratic 
party, whose leading principle is to sustain the executive, and deny 
all power to the legislature, and which does not hold a solitary 
prhiciple in common with the republican party of 1798." 

In a speech delivered in Hanover county, Virginia, June 27, 
1840, on the state of the country, speaking of the enormous in- 
crease of executive power, Mr. Clay says : — 

" And yet the partisans of this tremendous executive power ar- 



510 POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 

roo-ate to themselves the name of democrats, and bestow upon us, 
who are opposed to it, the denomination of federalists ! In the 
senate of the United States, there are five gentlemen who were 
members of the federal party, and four of them have been suddenly 
transformed into democrats, and are now warm supporters of this 
administration, while I, who had exerted the utmost of my humble 
abilities to arouse the nation to a vindication of its insulted honor, 
and its violated rights, and to the vigorous prosecution of the war 
against Great Britain, to which they were violently opposed, find 
myself, by a sort of magical influence, converted into a federalist ' 
The only American citizen that I ever met with, who was an 
avowed monarchist, was a supporter of the administration of Gen- 
eral Jackson ; and he acknowledged to me, that his motive was 
to bring about the system of monarchy, which his judgment pre- 
ferred. ******* 

" What are the positions of the two great parties of the present 
day? Modern democracy has reduced the federal theory of a 
strong and energetic executive to practical operation. It has turned 
from the people, the natural ally o( genui?ie democracy, to the ex- 
ecutive, and, instead of vigilance, jealousy, and distrust, has given 
to that department all its confidence, and made to it a virtually sur- 
render of all the powers of government. The recognised maxim 
of royal infallibility is transplanted from the British monarchy into 
modern American democracy, and the president can do no wrong ! 
This new school adopts, modifies, changes, renounces, renews, 
opinions at the pleasure of the executive. Is the bank of the 
United States a useful and valuable institution ? Yes, unanimously 
pronounces the democratic legislature of Pennsylvania. The pres- 
ident vetoes it as a pernicious and dangerous estabhshment. The 
democratic majority in the same legislature pronounce it to be 
pernicious and dangerous. The democratic majority of the house 
of representatives of the United States, declare the deposites of the 
public money in the bank of the United States to be safe. The 
president says they are unsafe, and removes them. The democ- 
racy say they are unsafe, and approve the removal. The presi- 
dent says that a scheme of a sub-treasury is revolutionary and dis- 
organizing. The democracy say it is revolutionary and disorgani- 
zing. The president says it is wise and salutary. The democracy 
say it is wise and salutary. 

" The whigs of 1840 stand where the republicans of 1798 stood, 
and where the whigs of the revolution were, battling for liberty, for 
the people, for free institutions, against power, against corruption, 
against executive encroachments, against monarchy. 

" They [our opponents] count upon success by the use of 
two words, democracy and federalism — democracy, which, in vio- 
lation of all truth, they appropriate to themselves, and federalism, 
which, in violation of all justice, they apply to us." 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 511 

In a speech at Nashville, Tennessee, August 17, 1840, Mr. 
Clay said : — 

" The party in power profess to be democrSiis jpar excelle7ice ! 
Among all their usurpations, he knew of none more absurd than 
the usurpation of this name. He professed himself to be a true 
democrat. He learned his democracy in the school of '98 and 
'99. It was very different, he confessed, from the democracy 
taught now-a-days, in high places. It did not say, in the language 
of the motto upon the Bedford county banner, which he just read, 
' The people expect too much from the government ;' ' Let the gov- 
ernment take care of itself, and the people of themselves.' No ! 
the democracy that he had learned was the reverse of this lan- 
guage of the present democratic president. But the new de- 
mocracy does not stop here. It asks for allegiance to the powers 
that be. The democracy of Jefferson asked a candidate for office 
if he was capable, and honest, and would support the constitution ? 
But the new democracy asks very different questions. It asks, 
how many votes can you bring to the polls ? What's your influ- 
ence ? Are you boisterous partisans ? It also holds out induce- 
ments, or bribes, which Jefferson's democracy did not. It says, 
if you labor in my cause, and the people reject you, I will take 
care that your reward shall be certain. He instanced the appoint- 
ment of Mr. Grundy, and then referred to the appointment of 
John M. Niles, as postmaster-general, who, not four months pre- 
vious, was rejected by the people by four thousand five hundred 
votes. To be thus beaten, was a sure passport to an executive 
office. » * » ]Vfr, Qiay said he claimed to be a democrat 
in the true sense of the word — a democrat ready to stand by or 
die for his country." 

In a speech in the senate, January 28, 1841, Mr. Clay said : — 
" Why, sir, the amount of the whole of it is, that the gentle- 
men, calling themselves, most erroneously, the democratic party, 
have administered the government so badly, that they have lost all 
credit and confidence at home and abroad, and because the people 
of the United States have refused to trust them any longer, and 
foreign bankers will not trust them either, they utter a whining cry 
that their recent signal defeat has been the work of foreign influ- 
ence ! Democratic party ! They have not the slightest pretension 
to this denomination. They have run it down. But, thank God, 
true democracy and true democrats have not been run down." 

In his speech at Lexington, June 6, 1842, he said : "In all of 
these examples, the democratic party, as it calls itself — a denom- 
ination to which I respectfully think it has not the least just pre- 
tension," &c. 

*' The political opponents of the party to which I belong — dem- 



512 



POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 



ocrats, as they most undeservedly call themselves," said Mr. Clay 
to Mr. Mendenhall, October 1, 1842. 

Though these citations convey many more thoughts than that 
for which they are adduced, partly in anticipation of the main de- 
sign of this chapter, they will doubtless be regarded as sufficient 
to prove Mr. Clay's habit of claiming for himself the title of a 
DEMOCRAT of the old JefFersonian school, and of denying the 
right of his political opponents to this name. Because it has been 
thus stolen and misapplied, as the sacred name of Christian often 
is, for the sake of appearing under a false garb, the better to im- 
pose on the world, those to whom it properly belongs, have, to a 
great extent, and very unwisely, eschewed it, and thereby lost the 
influence which it always carries, and must carry, with it. De- 
mocracy is the TALISMAN that governs the world, and will govern 
it. It would be equally wise for sincere Christians to give up 
their name to false pretenders. The fate of the country is sealed 
up in this single word, and there is no escape from its influence. 
It is dear to the native born of the land, and every immigrant comes 
here for the sake of democracy. Democracy, all the world 
over, is the proud name of the people's sovereignty ; and so it is 
DESTINED to be. Who can desire, that the exultant feeling — 
" We are lords and kings, and there is no lord, no king, above 
us, Him that made us only excepted" — should be uprooted from 
its deep hold in the mind of American freemen ? And democ- 
racy is the only universal symbol of that sentiment. 

There may be many who would take exception to the char- 
acter of Thomas Jefferson as a man, and in the social relations, 
who must, nevertheless, acknowledge, that the school of democ- 
racy, of which he was the reputed father — but very erroneously — 
was the spontaneous growth of the American mind. It was a 
mere accident, that Jefferson was the leader at a time when it rose 
in the ascendant. He did not produce it, but was only an expo- 
nent — an accredited or received interpreter. It started into an im- 
posing development, to arrest executive pretensions, and to assert 
popular rights believed to be in danger ; and it will be found, that 
these are the rights which Mr. Clay has been advocating, vindica- 
ting, and defending, all his life, more especially the latter part of 
it, against executive encroachment and usurpation ; in other words, 
that he has been the defender of democratic power against unau- 
thorized regal pretensions. That, as a statesman, he has extended 
his sphere far beyond this specific function, and comprehended all 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 513 

the great interests of the country, as well as of humanity the world 
over, other parts of this work will sufficiently evince ; hut, if the 
liherties of the people of the United States should be preserved, 
and handed down to future generations, there will not be wanting 
evidence of their obligations to him who breasted the fierce assaults 
of executive power on the rights of the representatives of the peo- 
ple, and who, although he could not save the constitution from vi- 
olation, shielded it from destruction. 

The alien and sedition law movement met with its fate, as soon 
as it made its appearance. There was nothing in the administra- 
tion to sustain it. The indignant voice of the nation changed the 
whole current of affairs, the moment it had time for utterance. 
The reaction was powerful and protracted, not perhaps without its 
attendant evils, as in all such cases of popular fermentation. It 
gave more influence to the reputed leader, than he was fairly en- 
titled to ; and but for his good sense — and it may be supposed 
patriotism — he might have done mischief. Even as it was, some 
thought that mischief was mixed up with his usefulness, and in 
part neutralized it. While president of the United States, he was 
able to carry almost everything he proposed — a dangerous power 
in the chief magistrate of a republic — and some of the measures 
he did carry, are at least doubtful as to their effectiveness for good. 
The great majority of the people, however, continued their confi- 
dence in him, bore patiently the burdens of the time, till the na- 
tion glided quietly into the Madisonian era of twenty years dura- 
tion, including the administrations of Monroe and J. Q. Adams. 
With the exception of the war with Great Britain, this was a quiet 
era. Each department of the government occupied its appropri- 
ate sphere. There was no collision — no complaint — worthy of 
remark. Jeffersonian democracy was supposed to be the ruling 
spirit of this time, and doubtless was. Merging the Madisonian 
into the Jeffersonian era, both included a period of twenty-eight 
years, during which time, no disposition was manifested in the 
executive branch of the government, to encroach on the demo- 
cratic powers of the constitution. 

But the commencement of General Jackson's administration 
was the opening of a new era, entirely different from anything 
that had been known in the history of the country. The maxner 
in which he gained his ascendency, as disclosed in another part 
of this work, will be judged of by impartial posterity, and the 
materials of that judgment are perhaps even now tolerably snffi- 



514 POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 

cient. He came with a rush — with the violence of a tornado— on 
the popular mind of the country, and took it by storm. The ground 
ol his popularity was the alleged deprivation of his rights in 1825. 
The judgment of the common mind was surrendered, and ab- 
sorbed in his will. The instance of the surrender of the Tam- 
many Society, on the protective policy, which they espoused so 
boldly, and advocated so stoutly, in 1819, as shown in another 
chapter, is a remarkable case in point. It was in the hands of 
President Jackson, that the regal power of the constitution marched 
into the halls of Congress, and by interference with legislation, 
initiating laws, dismissing official incumbents, and forcing others 
upon the senate, wresting the public purse from the custody of 
Congress and taking it into his own, and sending back bills passed 
by the representatives of the people with his veto upon them, vir- 
tually took possession of the democratic platform erected there by 
the same instrument. That was, and is ever, the people's 
ground. That was set up for the defence of their liberties. That 
is the DEMOCRATIC power of the constitution, as opposed to the 
REGAL power vested in the president — the latter being admin- 
istrative, and the former legislative — both designed to act 
in their own appropriate spheres, independent of each other. 
The instances in which these encroachments were made, are dis- 
closed elsewhere. It was the task of Mr. Clay to expose, to de- 
nounce, and, as far as he could, to thwart and defeat them ; and for 
the last twelve years of his public life, he had little else to engage 
his attention, and employ his powers. 

Impressed with the alarming tendency of this great change in 
the political character of the times, while the regal power of the 
constitution was apparently marching to the possession of the last 
remnant of its democratic prerogatives — a power, in such a case, 
so utterly at variance with the former history of the governmenl 
and the country, as well as with the obvious design of the consti- 
tution itself — Mr. Clay, before he retired from public life in 1842, 
brought forward in the senate three resolutions for the abridgment 
and restriction of this regal sway by an amendment of the federal 
constitution, first, in regard to the veto; next, in regard to the 
appointment of members of Congress to office ; and lastly, to take 
from the president all power over the public purse, by giving the 
appointment of the officers of the treasury to Congress alone, by 
election in that body. He felt there was doubt over the pros- 
pect of accomplishing the object; but "still it wa» the duty of 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 615 

every friend of his country to use proper efforts." Mr. Clay had 
been for years meditating this purpose, and had in various forms 
announced it publicly. He was also in favor of making the in- 
cumbent of the presidential office ineligible for a second term. 

The following description of these regal pretensions, and of this 
regal power stretched beyond the limits of the constitution, is con- 
tained in Mr. Clay's Hanover county (Va.) speech, of June 27, 
1840 :— 

" In my deliberate opinion, the present distressed and distracted 
state of the country may be traced to the single cause of the action, 
the encroachments, and the usurpations of the executive branch of 
the government. I have not time here to exhibit and to dwell upon 
all the instances of these, as they have occurred in succession, 
during the last twelve years. They have been again and again 
exposed, on other more fit occasions. But I have thought this 
a proper opportunity to point out the enormity of the pretensions, 
principles, and practices of that department, as they have been, 
from time to time, disclosed, in these late years, and to show the 
rapid progress which has been made in the fulfilment of the remark- 
able language of our illustrious countryman, that the federal exec- 
utive had an awful squinting toward monarchy. * * * * » 

" The late president of the United States advanced certain new 
and alarming pretensions for the executive department of the 
government, the effect of which, if established and recognised by 
the people, must inevitably convert it into a monarchy. The first 
of these, and it was a favorite principle with him, was, that the 
executive department should be regarded as a unit. By this 
principle of unity, he meant and intended, that all the executive 
officers of government should be bound to obey the commands and 
execute the orders of the president of the United States, and that 
they should be amenable to him, and he be responsible for them. 
Prior to his administration, it had been considered that they were 
bound to observe and obey the constitution and laws, subject only 
to the general superintendence of the president, and responsible by 
impeachment, and to the tribunals of justice, for injuries inflicted 

on private citizens. 

********** 

"Now, if the whole official corps, subordinate to the president 
of the United States, are made to know and to fee! that they hold 
their respective offices by the tenure of conformity and obedience 
to his will, it is manifest, that they must look to that will, and not 
to the constitution and laws, as the guide of their official conduct. 
The weakness of human nature, the love and emoluments of office, 
perhaps the bread necessary to the support of their families, would 
make this result absolutely certain. . . . The new and monstrous 
pretension has been advanced, that, although the concurrence of the 



516 POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 

senate is necessary by the constitution, to the confirmation of an ap- 
pointment, the president may subsequently dismiss the person ap- 
pointed, not only without communicating the grounds on which he 
has acted to the senate, but without any such communication to the 
people themselves, for whose benefit all offices are created ! And 
so bold and daring has the executive branch of the government 
become, that one of its cabinet ministers, himself a subordinate 
officer, has contemptuously refused, to members of the house of 
representatives, to disclose the grounds on which he has under- 
taken to dismiss from office persons acting as deputy postmasters 
in his department ! 

• *******« 

" To concentrate all responsibility in the president, is to annihi- 
late all responsibility. For who ever expects to see the day arrive 
when a president of the United States will be impeached; or, if 
impeached, when he can not command more than one third of the 
senate to defeat the impeachment? 

"But to construct the scheme of practical despotism, while all 
the forms of free government remained, it was necessary to take one 
further step. By the constitution, the president is enjoined to take 
care that the laws be executed. This injunction was merely in- 
tended to impose on him the duty of a general superintendence ; 
to see that offices were .filled; officers at their respective posts, in 
the discharge of their official functions ; and that all obstructions to 
the enforcement of the laws were removed, and when necessary for 
that purpose, to call out the militia. No one ever imagined, prior 
to the administration of President Jackson, that a president of the 
United States was to occupy himself with supervising and attend- 
ing to the execution of all the minute details of every one of the 
hosts of offices in the United States. 

"Under the constitutional injunction just mentioned, the late 
president [General Jackson] put forward that most extraordinary 
pretension that the constitution and laws of the United States were 
to be executed as he understood them; and this pretension was at 
tempted to be sustained, by an argument equally extraordinary, 
that the president, being a sworn officer, must carry them into 
eflfect, according to his sense of their meaning. The constitution 
and laws were to be executed, not according to their import, as 
handed down to us by our ancestors, as interpreted by contempo- 
raneous expositions, as expounded by concurrent judicial decis- 
ions, as fixed by an uninterrupted course of congressional legis- 
lation, but in that sense in which a president of the United States 
happened to understand them ! 

" To complete this executive usurpation, one further object re- 
mained. By the constitution, the command of the army and the 
navy is conferred on the president. If he could unite the purse 
with the sword, nothing would be left to gratify the insatiable thirsJ 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 617 

for power. In 1833 the president seized the treasury of the United 
States, and from that day to this, it has continued substantially 
under his control. The seizure was effected by the removal of 
one secretary of the treasury, understood to be opposed to the meas- 
ure, and by the dismissal of another, who refused to violate the 
law of the land upon the orders of the president. 

" Do not mock us with the vain assurance of the honor and probity 
of a president, nor remind us of the confidence which we ought 
to repose in his imagined virtues. The pervading principles of 
our system of government — of all free government — is not merely 
the possibility, but the absolute certainty of infidelity and treachery, 
with even the highest functionary of the state ; and hence all the 
restrictions, securities, and guarantees, which the wisdom of our 
ancestors or the sad experience of history had Inculcated, have 
been devised and thrown around the chief magistrate. 

" Here, friends and fellow-citizens, let us pause and contemplate 
this stupendous structure of executive machinery and despotism, 
which has been reared in our young republic. The executive 
branch of the government is a unit : throughout all its arteries 
and veins, there is to be but one heart, one head, one will. The 
number of the subordinate executive officers and dependants in the 
United States has been estimated, in an official report, founded on 
public documents, made by a senator from South Carolina [Mr. 
Calhoun], at one hundred thousand. Whatever it may be, all of 
them, wherever they are situated, are bound implicitly to obey the 
orders of the president. And absolute obedience to his will is se- 
cured and enforced, by the power of dismissing them, at his pleas- 
ure, from their respective places. To make this terrible power of 
dismission more certain and efficacious, its exercise is covered up 
in mysterious secrecy, without exposure, without the smallest re- 
sponsibility. The constitution and laws of the United States are 
to be executed in the sense in which the president understands 
them, although that sense may be at variance with the understand- 
ing of every other man in the United States. It follows, as a 
necessary consequence, from the principles deduced by the presi- 
dent from the constitutional injunction as to the execution of the 
laws, that, if an act of Congress be passed, in his opinion, contrary 
to the constitution, or if a decision be pronounced by the courts, in 
his opinion, contrary to the constitution or the laws, that act or 
that decision the president is not obliged to enforce, and he could 
not cause it to be enforced, without a violation, as is pretended, of 
his official oath. #•*••••• 

The march of power is ever onward. As times and seasons ad- 
monished, it openly and boldly, in broad day, makes its progress ; 
or, if alarm be excited by the enormity of its pretensions, it silently 
and secretly, in the shades of night, steals its devious way. It 



518 POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 

now Storms and mounts the ramparts of the fortress of liberty ; it 
now saps and undermines its foundations. Finally, the command 
of the army and navy being already in the president, and having 
acquired a perfect control over the treasur}' of the United States, 
he has consummated that frightful union of purse and sword, so 
long, so much, so earnestly deprecated by all true lovers of civil 
liberty. And our present chief magistrate stands solemnly and 
voluntarily pledged, in the face of the whole world, to follow in the 
footsteps, and to carry out the measures and the principles of his 
illustrious predecessor ! 

" The sum of the whole is, that there is but one power, one 
control, one will, in the state. All is concentrated in the president. 
He directs, orders, commands, the whole machinery of the state. 
Through the official agencies scattered throughout the land, and 
absolutely subjected to his will, he executes, according to his 
pleasure or caprice, the whole power of the commonwealth, which 
has been absorbed and engrossed by him. And one sole will pre- 
dominates in, and animates the whole of this vast community. If 
this be not practical despotism, I am incapable of conceiving or 
defining it. Names are nothing. The existence or non-existence 
of arbitrary government does not depend upon the title or denom- 
ination bestowed on the chief of the state, but upon the quantum 
of power which he possesses and wields. Autocrat, sultan, em- 
peror, dictator, king, doge, president, are all mere names, in which 
the power respectively possessed by them is not to be found, but is 
to be looked for in the constitution, or the established usages and 
practices of the several states which they govern and control." 

On the 24th of January, 1842, Mr. Clay brought forward his 
resolutions for the amendment of the constitution, to suppress the 
excesses and prevent the growth of this regal power, and to restrict 
and regulate its action within safe bounds ; and his remarks on this 
occasion were chiefly confined to the subject of the veto. The 
following are some of them : — 

" It [the veto] was known to all to have originated in the insti- 
tution of the tribunitian power in ancient Rome ; that it was seized 
upon, and perverted to purposes of ambition, when the empire 
was established under Augustus ; and that it had not been finally 
abolished until the reign of Constantine. There could be no 
doubt that it had been introduced from the practice under the em- 
pire, into the monarchies of Europe, in most of which, in some 
form, and under some modification or other, it was now to be 
found. But, although it existed in the national codes, the power 
had not, in the case of Great Britain, been exercised for a century 
and a half past ; and, if he was correctly informed on the subject, 
it had, in the French monarchy, never been exercised at all. During 
the memorable period of the French re /olution, when a new con 



THE TIMES OF MR CLAY. 519 

stitution was under consideration, this subject of the veto power 
had been largely discussed, and had agitated the whole country. 
Every one must recollect how it had been turned against the un- 
fortunate Louis XVI., who had been held up to the ridicule of 
the populace, under the title of ' Monsieur V^eto,' as his wife, the 
queen, had been called " Madame Veto ;' and, although after 
much difficulty, the power had finally found a place in the consti- 
tution, not a solitary instance had occurred of its actual exercise. 
Under the colonial state of this country, the power was transplanted, 
from the experience which had been had of it in Europe, to the 
laws relating to the colonies, and that in a double form ; for there 
was a veto of the colonial governor, and also a veto of the crown. 
But what was thought of this power by the inhabitants of these 
states, when rising to assert their freedom, might be seen in the 
words of the instrument in which they asserted their independence. 
At the head of all the grievances stated in that paper, as reasons 
for our separation from Great Britain, was placed the exercise of 
this very power of the royal veto. Speaking of the king, the 
declaration of independence employed this language : — 

" ' He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and 
necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his governors to 
pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended 
in their operations, till his assent should be obtained ; and, when 
so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.' 

" While there had been no such thing in practice as an encroach- 
ment by the federal upon the state governments, there had been, 
within the federal government itself, a constant encroachment by 
the executive upon the legislative department. 

"First, it attacked the treaty-making power. None could now 
read the language of the constitution, without at once coming to 
the conclusion, that the intention of the authors of that instrument 
was, that the senate should be consulted by the president, not 
merely in the ratification, but in the inception, of all treaties : that, 
in the commencement of the negotiations, the instructions of the 
ministers appointed to treat, th6* character and provisions of the 
treaty, the senate should be consulted, and should first yield its 
assent. And such had, in fact, been the interpretation put upon 
the treaty-making power, in the first and purest years of our gov- 
ernment. Every one must recollect the early history of the exer- 
cise of the power, and the high sanction for such a usage. The 
first president had been wont to come to the senate, there to pro- 
pose a foreign mission, and to consult with his constitutional ad- 
visers, the members of the senate, on the instructions to be given 
to the minister who should be sent. But this practice had since 
been aoandoned. The president now, without a word of consul- 
tation with the senate, on bis own mere personal sense of propriety 

Vol. I.— 32 



520 



POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 



concluded a treaty, and promised to the foreign power its ratifica 
tion ; and then after all this had been done, and the terms of the 
treaty agreed upon, he, for the first time, submitted it to the senate 
for ratification. Now, every one must see, that there was a great 
difference between rejecting what had been already actually done, 
and refusing to do that thing if asked beforeh^d. All must feel, 
tliat they often gave their official assent to what they never would 
have sanctioned, but for the consideration that the treaty was 
already concluded, and that the faith of the nation was in some 
sort pledged for its ratification. ***♦*» 

" The next executive encroachment he should notice was that 
which occurred in the dismissal from office of persons appointed 
by and with the consent of the senate. The effect of this practice 
was virtually to destroy all agency and cooperation of the senate 
in such appointments. Of what avail was it that the senate should 
to-day solemnly ratify and confirm the appointment of an individual 
to an office under the government, when the president could to- 
morrow reverse the effect of their act by his mere breath ? Every 
one knew that the power of removal had been grossly perverted. 
In the early days of the constitution, it had been maintained, that 
that power could be exercised only in case of malfeasance or mis- 
feasance in office ; and that the president who should dare to em- 
ploy it for any other end, would subject himself to impeachment. 
But our history and experience has gone to show, that this liability 
to impeachment was a mere scarecrow, and that it could never 
have any practical effect in a popular government, constituted as 
ours is, and in a country politically divided as ours is ever like 
to be. By the free exercise of this power of removal, the senate 
had lost its practical influence on the whole subject of appointment 
to office. Instance after instance had occurred, where an individ- 
ual had been dismissed by the executive, whom the senate would 
gladly have replaced in office, but whom they were unable to retain 
there, and were therefore compelled to sanction the nomination of 
a successor. The actual result of such a state of things was, he 
repeated it, that the cooperation of the senate with the president, 
in the matter of appointments, hadb.een almost completely nullified 
for years past. *## ***#» 

" Mr. Clay said, it was not his purpose to go into all the details 
of these encroachments by the executive, upon the constitutional 
powers and prerogatives of a single legislative branch of the 
government. He would now pass to its attacks on the powers of 
the Congress of the United States. 

" And the first instance of this to which he should refer, was the 
creation of officers and the designation of their salaries, without 
the consent of Congress, or any consultation with it. Another, and 
a more formidable instance, was to be found in the assumption, 
within the last few years, of the purse of the nation. * • • 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 521 

This seizure of the public deposites had yet been unprovided 
against ; the congressional power to control them had been unre- 
sumed, and thus a state of things was permitted to continue, by 
which the nation was virtually placed at the feet of the executive. 

" Let not gentlemen mock him, by talking about the impossibility 
of the president's drawing money out of the treasury, except under 
an appropriation by Congress. Let them not tell him of the re- 
sponsibility of public officers ; let them look at facts ; let them look 
at what had actually occurred, on the removal of two or three sec- 
retaries of the treasury, in order to accomplish this very seizure 
of the public treasure ; and then let them look at the dismissal of a 
countless host of subordinate officers, because they did not happen 
to hold the same political opinions that were held by the president. 
Of what avail were laws? The president had nothing to do but 
say to his secretary, ' Issue your warrant for such a sum of money, 
and direct the register and comptroller to sign it ;' and if they should 
talk about a regard for their oaths, and boggle at obeying, ' Tell 
them to do what I command them, and if not, I will find men who 
will.' * * * There was a third instance of this encroach- 
ment ; which he was authorized by facts to state, but on which he 
should not at this time dwell. Not only had the purse of the na- 
tion been seized ; not only did it still remain in the hands of the 
president; but the nation had seen armies raised, by executive man- 
date, not only without authority or shadow of authority of law, but, 
as in the case of the Florida volunteers, after a law had been asked 
for, and positively refused. Other instances might be cited, in which 
a military force had been raised, without the sanction of Congress. 

" The executive branch of the government was eternally in ac- 
tion ; it was ever awake ; it never slept ; its action was continuous 
and unceasing, like the tides of some mighty river, which contin- 
ued flowing and flowing on, swelling, and deepening, and widen- 
ing, in its onward progress, till it swept away every impediment, 
and broke down and removed every frail obstacle which might be 
set up to impede its course. Let gentlemen look at all history, 
and they would find that it had ever been so. The legislative 
branch of government met only periodically ; its power lay in its 
assembling and acting ; the moment it adjourned, its power disap- 
peared ; it was dissipated, gone ; but there stood the president at 
the head of the executive department, ever ready to enforce the 
law, and to seize upon every advantage which presented itself, for 
the extension and augmentation of its power. 

" Mr. Clay had taken the pains to look into the provisions of 
tv. -nty-six state constitutions, in relation to this matter of the veto, 
and the result was highly curious and interesting. The states 
were in this respect divided, as equally as their number would 
admit, into three distinct classes. Nine of them tjave to the exec- 



>22 



POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 



utive the veto power, unless controlled by two thirds of the legis- 
lature. Eight other states conferred the veto, but controlled it 
by a second veto of a majority, as was proposed in the amend- 
ment now under consideration. While the nine remaining states 
had not inserted the veto at all ; and at the head of these stood one 
which had been called the mother of states — Virginia. Now some of 
these state constitutions were of a date anterior to that of the con- 
stitution of the United States itself. If there had been this very 
great danger of executive encroachment and of hasty legislation, 
one would suppose it would have been heard of in these nine 
states. Had any instance yet occurred to show that such a 
danger did exist? Mr. Clay had heard of none, read of none; 
and he put it to the advocates of this arbitrary and monarchical 
power, he put it especially to democrats, who, while they professed 
themselves, and, he doubted not, honestly and conscientiously pro- 
fessed themselves friends of the people, came out in the contest 
between monarchical prerogative on the one hand, and civil free- 
dom on the other, as the avowed advocates of prerogative ; — he 
put it to all of them to tell, if such dangers both of encroachment 
and rashness as were pretended as a pretext for the veto did actu- 
ally exist, how it happened that in the nine states he had named, 
during so long a period as had elapsed since their constitutions 
were formed, no instances had occurred, either of encroachment by 
the legislature on the powers of the executive, or of such rash 
and hasty legislation as called for the restraint and safeguard of a 
single sovereign will ?******* 

" The senate at present consisted of fifty-two members ; of 
that number a majority consisted of twenty-seven ; two thirds 
amounted to thirty-six. Supposing a law to be passed by a bare 
majority (and in all great and contested questions bills were wont 
to be passed by very small majorities), then there would be in its 
favor twenty-seven votes. The bill was submitted to the presi- 
dent, and returned by him with his veto. The force of the presi- 
dential veto could not be overturned but by thirty-six votes. Here, 
then, the veto in the hands of the president was equal in its effect 
upon legislation to nine senatorial votes. Mr. Clay dismissed all 
considerations of influence derived from his office, all the glittei 
and eclat of the president's high station, and all the persuasion 
directed to the interests of men by his vast patronage ; all this he 
laid out of view, and looked merely at the numerical fact, that in 
the senate the veto was equal to nine votes. And now in regard 
to the other branch. The house of representatives consisted of 
two hundred and forty-two members ; to constitute a majority re 
quired one hundred and twenty-two ; two thirds amounted to one 
hundred and sixty-two. By looking at this difference, it would 
be seen, as in the case of the senate, that the executive veto 
amounted in effect to forty representative votes. 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 523 



" We had had six presidents who had previously been sena- 
tors. They were able and eminent men ; but he wished to in- 
quire, whether any gentleman could show that their wisdom and 
other distinguished qualities had been so great as to be equal to 
the wisdom of nine other senators ? Could it be shown that their 
patriotism, and intelligence, and integrity, were equal to those of 
forty members of the house of representatives ? If not, how did 
it happen that a man who, when in that chamber, and acting with 
his fellow-senators, had been considered upon a par with them, 
was no sooner transferred to the other end of the avenue, than his 
will became equal to that of nine senators and forty representa- 
tives ? How, he asked, did this happen, and wherein was it just 
and right? Was it not sufficient, that this man, after his political 
apotheosis, should enjoy all the glitter, and distinction, and glory 
attached to his office ? Was it not enough that he wielded so vast 
and formidable an amount of patronage, and thereby exerted an 
influence so potent and so extensive ? Must there be superadded 
to all, a legislative force equal to nine senators and forty members 
of the house of representatives 9 * * * * * 

" Mr. Clay had hitherto viewed the veto power simply in its 
numerical weight, in the aggregate votes of the two houses ; but 
there was another and far more important point of view in which 
it ought to be considered. He contended, that practically, and in 
effect, the veto, armed with such a qualification as now accompa- 
nied it in the constitution, was neither more nor less than an abso- 
lute power. It was virtually an unqualified negative on the legis- 
lation of Congress. Not a solitary instance had yet occurred in 
which the veto once exerted had ever been overruled, nor was such 
a case likely to happen. In most questions where the veto could 
be exerted, there was always a considerable difference of opinion 
both in the country and in Congress as to the bill which had been 
passed. In such circumstances, when all the personal influence, 
the official patronage, and the reasoning which accompanied the 
veto, were added to the substantial weight of the veto itself, every 
man acquainted with human nature would be ready to admit, that 
if nothing could set it aside but a vote of two thirds in both houses, 
it might as well have been made absolute at once. 

"He now approached another view of it, to which he would 
ask the serious and undivided attention of the senate. The veto 
power professed to act only while the legislature acted ; then it 
was to terminate. Its effect was to be, to consummate legislation. 
The officer of government, in whose hands the constitution placed 
a power so formidable, was supposed in theory to remain profoundly 
silent as to the passage of great measures of public policy, until 
they were presented to him in a finished form for his approbatioB 
and sanction. 



524 POLITICAL CHARACTER OF 

" This was the theory ; but Mr. Clay contended, that really and 
in practice this veto power drew after it the power of initiating 
laws, and in its effect must ultimately amount to conferring on the 
executive the entire legislative power of the government. With 
the power to initiate and the power to consummate legislation, to 
give vitality and vigor to every law, or to strike it dead at his pleas- 
ure, the president must ultimate y become the ruler of the nation. 

" Did not gentlemen recollect, how often, during the administra- 
tion of an eminent individual, now hi private life [General Jack- 
son], intimations had been given beforehand, that a certain bill 
would be vetoed, if it were passed ? And did they not remember 
various instances, in which the threat had been fulfilled ? Take 
the experience of the last six months. Congress have passed two 
bills to establish a bank of the United States — bills, in all the pro- 
visions of which neither party concurred, and which would not 
have had the concurrence of twenty men in either house, had their 
minds been left uninfluenced by the expected action of the execu- 
tive. Take, as a special instance, the famous sixteenth section of 
one of those bills. Mr. Clay was free to declare, that he did not 
know a solitary man among those who voted for the bill, who 
would have voted for that section, but as a measure of conciliation, 
and in the hope that, so modified, the bill would receive the sanc- 
tion of the president. True, that expectation was not realized ; 
the sacrifice was vainly made, but it had been made with a view to 
that end, and that alone. And so in regard to the second of those 
bills. That bill, as he was informed, came to Congress, precisely 
as it had left the president's hand. So anxious had Congress been, 
to secure the approbation of the president, that, although almost 
everything in the bill would either have been omitted, or amended 
by a majority, they took it as it came from the presidential hand, 
and passed it, letter for letter, as they received it. Without going 
further, did not this fact prove, that the possession of the veto 
power drew after it the power of initiating laws ? 

" Take another case, in the bill now before the judiciary com- 
mittee. Was there one man to be found, in either house of 
Congress, who would ever have proposed such a measure as the 
exchequer bonrd provided in that bill ? Yet, what had been the 
feeling ? Had it not been this : must we go home without doing 
something ? Had not the feeling been, we are bound by the veto 
power, we can not do what we would ? Had not the feding been, 
we must take what the executive offers, or get nothing ? Yes. 
Already the idea was becoming familiarized to the minds of free- 
men, to men of only the second generation after the days of the 
revolution, of submitting to the dictation of the executive, because 
without his assent they could do nothing. Mr. Clay warned the 
nation, that if this veto power was not arrested, if it were not either 



THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 625 

abolished, or at least limited and circumscribed, in process of 
time, and that before another such period had elapsed as had 
intervened since the revolution, the whole legislation of this coun- 
try would come to be prepared at the White House, or in one or 
other of the executive departments, and would come down to Con- 
gress in the shape of bills for them to register, and pass through 
the forms of legislation, just as had once been done in the ancient 
courts of France. 

" Then, to enable a nation of freemen to carry out their will, to 
set Congress free to speak that will, to redress the wrongs, and to 
supply the wants, of those that sent them, Mr. Clay again declared, 
that the veto power must be modified and restrained. If not, the 
question which Congress would have to decide would be, not what 
is the proper remedy for the existing grievances of the country, 
not what will restore the national prosperity ; — no ; but what meas- 
ure will be sanctioned by the chief magistrate ? 

******* 

" The question was the old question, whether we should have, 
in this country, a power tyrannical, despotic, absolute, the exercise 
of which must, sooner or later, produce an absolute despotism ; or 
a free representative government, with powers clearly defined and 
carefully separated ? That was the true question to be decided." 

It can hardly be believed, that the descendants of Americans of 
1776, versed in the history of the causes and events of the Ameri- 
can revolution, will listen to the recital of the facts disclosed in the 
foregoing extracts, and not feel their blood coursing with acceler- 
ated speed through nature's channels, and the pulsations of their 
bosoms knocking loudly in the hidden recesses whence their mo- 
nitions are sounded ! That this recital should be forced, in the 
discharge of a last, high, and solemn duty, from the lips of a pub' 
lie servant, who had stood first and highest in the councils of the 
nation for nearly half a century, being about to retire to the scenes 
of private life — who had seen it all, and fought the battles of 
emocracy, in a long and painful struggle against these bold ad- 
vances of regal power — imparts to it a just demand for intense and 
profound attention ! The facts are notable, and can not oe denied. 
They are fresh in the memory of every living man. 

That the chief executive of the nation, in the discharge of his 
high functions, should have departed so much from the primitive 
simplicity of President Washington, who was accustomed to min- 
gle his ofiicial responsibility with the coordinate authority as with 
compeers ; that treaties with foreign powers, of the greatest mo- 
ment, should be originated and made without a word of advice 



t3 



526 THE TIMES OF MR. CLAY. 

with the senate of the nation, and imposed upon that body, under 
circumstances which allow them no voice or influence in the terms 
that the executive officers of the government, in all their classes, 
at home and abroad, should be so appointed, and so controlled by 
the will of the president, that " the advice and consent" of the 
senate, prescribed by the constitution, and which was designed to 
confer coordinate authority over all such public agents, should 
have been reduced to a mere formal nullity ; that the united wis- 
dom, the experience, and the sovereign will of the democratic 
branch of the government, should be obliged to consult the will of 
the executive for purposes of legislation, and go begging at the 
feet of one-man power for what the people want, and then perad- 
venture be turned off with a veto ; that the purse of the nation 
should be wrested from its lawful keepers, and kept out of thei- 
hands in perpetuity ; — these are facts, which, to say the least, were 
never expected, when, in the eighteenth century, the people poured 
out their blood like water, in hope of freedom, and when, sup- 
posing they had acquired it, they established the government and 
institutions of the United States ! 

It will be seen, therefore, that Mr. Clay rose with democracy, 
when Jefferson rose ; that he stood shoulder to shoulder with the 
democrats, himself a democrat — more commonly called repub- 
licans in the earlier periods of the republic — and fought with them 
under Jefferson ; under Madison through the war of 1812 ; under 
Monroe, and under J. Q. Adams ; that the democratic or repub- 
lican era ended with the retirement of Mr. Adams ; that Mr. Clay 
has always claimed to be a democrat ; that an alarming regal pow- 
er was asserted and assumed by General Jackson, and has main- 
tained the ascendency, with but little interval ; and that Mr. Clay's 
great efforts, since the rise of these dangerous pretensions, have 
been directed to limit, restrict, and suppress them, for the purpose 
of re-establishing the democratic power of the constitution. 







LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

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